His heart was beating at an unbelievable rate; it felt like it was going to explode as he pushed the bathroom door open.

The fear in his chest didn't vanish, but it shifted. This wasn't the kind of life-threatening terror he had braced for, though in his case… It could very well be.

Because as the light spilled out from the bathroom and lit the room, Kentaro made direct eye contact with the "culprit."

The mysterious intruder who had snuck into the bathroom was.

"S-SHAULA?!" He stammered.

Shaula blinked for a few seconds, letting the situation process in her brain before she rushed and covered herself.

And too Kentaro's horror, she was completely naked. Her porcelain skin shimmered in the yellowish glow, not a thread on her body. Her not-so-plump, but perfectly shaped chest bounced slightly as she jolted from the sudden intrusion. Her wide eyes met Kentaro's, her face erupting red. She froze like a rabbit in headlights; if she moved, everything would be revealed.

"K-K-Kentaro! What are you doing here?!" She whispered loudly, half a shout, half a desperate attempt not to wake the others.

Kentaro stumbled backward, nearly tripping. "WHY AM I HERE? I SHOULD BE ASKING YOU WHY YOU'RE BUTT-ASS NAKED IN MY BATHROOM, SHAULA?!" He whispered back, his voice cracking.

"I have to! This is the only way I do my, you know, thing!" She hissed, burying her face in her hands, trying to cover herself.

Kentaro slammed the door shut and leaned against it, his head spinning. "…Who the hell takes a dump butt naked... In someone else's house." He groaned, dragging his hands down his face. "That girl just gets weirder the longer I know her. Like, who needs to be naked to use the toilet? Surely that's a problem?"

Inside the bathroom, the flush of the toilet echoed. But then, something else.

A soft sparkle.

Like the twinkle sound effect from an anime.

Kentaro's eyes shot to the window across the room, his pulse racing. He swore he saw that faint pink glow again. It shimmered so quickly it could've been mistaken for coming from outside the building, but no… He'd seen it first inside his room.

"Shaula…" He muttered.

"What…Perv." Her muffled voice came through the door.

"First of all, not my fault; you should've locked the damn door. Second…did you happen to see a pink light? I know it sounds crazy, but-"

Silence. Then the sound of clothes rustling. The door creaked open, with Shaula stepping out in her shirt, cheeks puffed.

"What pink light?" She asked innocently.

Kentaro scratched his chin. "I've seen it twice now. First when I woke up, now again. The first time it looked like it came from my room…But just now, it looked like it was outside."

Shaula tilted her head, pretending to think, then smacked his back playfully.

"You're overthinking. Pink lights? This isn't some fairytale, Ken. Maybe seeing my beautiful body made you go crazy and had you seeing a pink light. Just go back to bed." Then she curled her lips into a teasing smirk. "Unless Master Kentaro wants to come into bed with me…Ravage my body, then wake up in the morning and tell me he only used me before tossing me aside, forcing me to raise his child alone, a baby with his eyes and smile, and I'd spend my whole life waiting desperately for his love!"

Kentaro's jaw dropped. "What the f-" He stopped himself, shaking his head as Shaula kept spinning her melodramatic, soap-opera fantasy.

"Whatever. Must be dreaming. I'll catch you in the morning, Shaula," Kentaro muttered, forcing a smile as he closed the door.

Shaula watched him go, her lips curling mischievously, then flattening.

"…Phew, that was close. Maybe I really should wear clothes when I go to the bathroom…" She whispered, shutting off the bathroom light and slipping back into her futon. She stared at the ceiling, her voice low and dark.

"You did a bad job, didn't you, me…" She murmured. No response came. Her smile faltered into something unreadable. "He seems nice, but is that really it? He might have evil intentions. And maybe he's making sure to take their power for himself… That could be a possibility," she said as she rolled over to her side, then back onto her back. "…Or maybe I should give in. See if Kentaro's different from the others. There must be a reason why Rin has taken a liking to him, surely, unless it's just for his power..."

She stared at the ceiling for while, her smile still present before she made up her mind. "Hehe, you know what? I'll give in and test you. But be warned, dear Kentaro…If you fail me, I'll ruin your entire life," she said quietly, as if she were speaking to someone.

The warmth vanished from her face. It was as if she had transformed into an entirely different girl, and her target was Kentaro.

*

The next morning arrived. Somehow, Kentaro managed a couple more hours of restless sleep after the "Shaula incident." But when his eyes opened, he very quickly realized he wasn't alone.

Serica had somehow broken free of Tenka's inhumane grip and was now clinging to him on the couch, curled into him like a child. Every curve of her body pressed against him as she mumbled in her sleep.

"Kennnntarooo…Just one ki…"

Kentaro's face flamed red. Cute, but also horrifying at the same time. He tried to shift her off him, but before he could, her lips pressed firmly onto his.

Not a graze. Not an accident. A full, dream-driven kiss.

Kentaro squealed in muffled protest, flailing as Serica's inhuman strength locked him down. He tried shaking her awake, nothing.

"Click"

The door to Kentaro's bedroom opened up, and on the other side stepped out Tenka, her hair down and all messy, her eyes baggy and extremely tired.

That was until her eyes landed on what was going on on the couch.

"WHAT TH-KEN?!"

Her scream nearly broke the glass windows.

"HAVE YOU BECOME SO DESPERATE YOU'RE FORCING A SLEEPING SERICA TO KISS YOU, YOU PERVERT?!"

Kentaro squealed harder, shaking his head violently, Serica's lips glued to his.

Tenka rushed over without missing a beat, her heart racing at one hundred miles per hour as she grabbed Serica's shoulders and began pulling. But she got nothing. Serica didn't budge, not even an inch.

"…What the hell?" Tenka muttered, sweat dripping as she tried again. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH THIS GIRL? DID YOU PUT SUPER GLUE ON HER LIPS?" She shouted as she still got nothing.

Yura and Aria woke up because of the ruckus, automatically walking into the living room. They both rubbed their eyes as they began to process the situation. It was then and there that as they finally saw what was going on, their eyes went wide, and without hesitation, they grabbed Serica too. Now two Alberlines and Tenka were tugging with all their might.

And finally.

BOOM!

Serica's lips tore free as she and the others went flying into the kitchen counter. The apartment shook, cupboards rattling.

Kentaro collapsed, gasping, clutching his lips. "My…lips…" he whimpered.

Groans filled the room as the girls slowly untangled themselves. Serica, now waking up, blinked in confusion as she realized she was sitting on Yura.

"Get off me, snow woman!" Yura wheezed.

Serica blinked, then stood, brushing herself off. "What are you guys doing?" she asked with a soft giggle.

The others glared, half-murderous. But none of them dared explain. Clearly, Serica didn't know what was going on.

Kentaro, face still red, quickly excused himself. "I'm, uh… gonna get changed first."

No one argued. They were too busy trying to piece together Serica's dream without letting Serica know what she had done.

Kentaro entered his room, relief washing over him, until something made his stomach drop.

The futon.

Empty.

He checked the bathroom. Nothing. He checked corners, even the closet. There was no sign of Shaula being in the apartment.

"Shaula's gone," Kentaro muttered to himself.

He scratched his head, walking back into the living room. "Hey, girls. Has anyone seen Shaula? She's not in the futon. Not in the bathroom either."

Silence.

They all looked at each other before looking back at Kentaro with their confused faces.

"Did you check under the bed?" Serica asked, scratching her eyelid.

"Why under the bed?" Kentaro replied back.

Tenka looked at Kentaro, her eyes narrowing. Her hair was messy, so she didn't look as intimidating as she usually did, but either way, she walked into Kentaro's room and did her own check before asking Yura and Serica to check outside just in case she decided to get some fresh air.

The rest of the crew waited as they heard Serica and Yura call out Shaula's name and searching the outer premises of the flat complex. But after a couple of minutes, Serica and Yura came back outside, their faces sad and confused.

They both looked at each other, then looked at the three who had been waiting for them and softly said, "She's gone..."

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