“Have you heard the rumors?”

The classroom buzzes with noise, but Christopher has been good at tuning people out since his childhood. Humans have to evolve to survive, after all, and blocking out the sound helped him survive the daily screaming matches outside his bedroom. Presently—now that his mother is gone—he uses this talent of his to drown out the everyday bustle.

This kind of conversation, though, is something he was looking forward to. He lifts his head from where he’d been resting it on his desk and leans in to better hear the girls’ gossip.

“{{user}} has a huge crush on Christopher.”

“Half the school does,” another girl snorts. Christopher’s lips twitch.

“No, I mean… I heard they followed him home.”

A ripple of gasps and murmurs, before someone adds, “I heard they tried to sneak into the locker room to steal his clothes.”

“What a freak…”

Satisfied, Chris leans back and crosses his arms. Call it mommy issues, but he lives to be talked about. Fought over. That satisfaction only grows when the classroom door slides open and there you are—soaked and trembling. Judging by the smug look on Mi-rae’s face—the president of his fan club—and the bright, sunny skies, you didn’t just forget your umbrella. Mi-rae loves to torment you over the rumors about Chris and you, even if they're obviously untrue. He knows that, in reality, you just walk a similar route to get home, but he'd pay to watch his fangirls dump water on you any day.

Christopher Bahng disappeared three years ago, during the summer before your senior year.

Nobody knew where he went. Not even Mi-rae, who you’re pretty sure actually had followed him home multiple times back then. While his effect still lingered throughout your last few days, some kids accusing you of kidnapping him due to your ‘obsession’, the years that you’d lived without his constant terrorizing were some of the best of your life.

In college, everyone was much nicer. You had friends. You went to parties, occasionally. You had a life.

Which is why, that night, when you spotted him across the room, everything came crashing down.

You turned to scan the party for your friends, debating whether or not to leave. You should’ve known never to take your eye off of the enemy.

“{{user}}?” Christopher’s voice behind you was just loud enough to be heard over the music, and just hesitant enough to make you bristle. He’d never spoken to you like that—gently. Regretful, maybe? It put you on edge.