True to his word, after a day of rest, Jake makes me pack up my apartment and loads it for me into a moving truck. He even paid off the 4 weeks of notice in my contract to the ndlord.

  A-Rankers must seriously be loaded.

  This is further confirmed once he opens the door to his apartment, a big pce on the 5th floor of a skyscraper. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a fancy-ass kitchen (even if I can't cook, I can appreciate a good kitchen), and a balcony.

  He hands me a key card. “Use this to get in and out of the apartment. Your room is second on the right, so feel free to set it up. There's a knob on the wall for underfloor heating, and…”

  I'll be honest. I didn't hear anything after “underfloor heating”. Oh. My. Gosh! How did I not know he lived in a pce like this? I mean, I rarely left my apartment, but still! This is a dream pce for someone who hates society and the world. Did I mention the underfloor heating? I'm gonna nap on the floor!

  “Right, take care,” he finishes. “I've got a raid to attend on the other side of the city. It's only a C-Rank dungeon, so I should be back this evening. There's leftover sagna we can have tonight.”

  He closes the door behind him, leaving me alone in this magnificent abode.

  Fortunately I only have 4 boxes with me. One for my PC, one for bedding, another one for my clothes, and the final one contained my kitchen utensils and rice cooker.

  I leave the rice cooker in the kitchen, and take the rest to my new room. Having 15 STR means this is a piece of cake, and I manage to safely transfer and unpack everything without any struggle. Is this what life is like for fit people?

  I turn the underfloor heater in my room to a cosy 32°C and lie down, the warmth gradually increasing on my back. What bliss.

  Maybe I should just date this guy? Life here would be great. He cooks great food. My parents would approve, which would be the first thing in my life they'd approve of. But… I don't know, I just don't feel it.

  On the dresser is the photo of the Senior Ball I unpacked. The only photo of me I own. Jake invited me because “even if you hate the idea of people and music, every girl should at least experience a Ball”. There he was in a nice maroon suit, next to my scrawny little ass in a bck dress that starkly contrasted my ghostly pale skin. He was right, of course. The music taste was awful and there were too many people.

  I’d had my first and only kiss then, and honestly? I still don't get what the deal is. No fireworks, just two wet skin fps smooshing against each other. Kinda gross if you ask me.

  Maybe that's what dating a guy is like? Is this what women just have to deal with and get used to?

  I shake my head and smack my cheeks. Enough of this nonsense thinking. I sit up on the floor, and that's when I realise something.

  My butt's cold.

  Is the underfloor heating on a timer or something?

  I get up and shuffle over to the knob on the wall. It is off. Even the digital dispy isn't showing anything.

  Nothing happens when I press the light switch either. Does this mean we have a power cut?

  I walk out into the main living area. It's oddly silent. You get so used to the hum of the fridge and other appliances that you don't notice them until they aren't there.

  There's a bit of a commotion going on outside on the nding. Some yelling, some crying, and all being annoying. Looks like the power cut is building-wide.

  I sigh to myself, put on an oversized bck hoodie with cute bunny ears–and an adorable little fluffy bunny tail near my butt–and grab a bck facemask. I don't want to leave, but the least I can do for Jake is get some information. That way he doesn't have to do everything himself when he gets back from work. Being a shut-in and being zy aren't the same.

  There's no little beep when I open the front door, just a small creak. The noises seem to be coming from down the hall to the left, back in the common area we passed when Jake showed me around.

  The door closes behind me, and I hear the unmistakable click of the lock engaging.

  Shit. I press the key card to the sensor. Naturally, nothing happens. While “zy” may not describe me, “fucking stupid” does.

  The common area is packed. More people come in from the stairwell leading from the floor above, escorted by people in security uniforms.

  “Aren't there any Rankers living here?”

  “Why'd a dungeon have to spawn next to my apartment?”

  Well, that expins the kerfuffle. The energy leaked from a dungeon tends to disrupt electricity nearby. The higher rank the dungeon, the stronger the leak and the wider the area of impact.

  “Mum, can we go back yet?”

  “I'm scared!”

  The noise is hurting my ears. I hate people. Maybe I can just chill by the door until Jake gets back. At least my phone battery is separate from the main electrical system.

  “You have to help!” A woman wails at a man with a dagger at his side. Likely a Ranker. His face is pale and he shifts awkwardly. “My kids got sucked in!”

  “S-sorry, ma’am,” he stammers. “I'm just an E-Ranker. I can't handle a B-Rank dungeon on my own! I-I’ve let the guild I'm with know, and there should be qualified Rankers here in a few hours.”

  My ears prick at that. I despise children. They are the literal worst. They run their bikes into the flower patch you've looked after for weeks, just because it's funny. They scream and make annoying noises, just because they want attention. They break your nose and cut off your long hair with scissors, just because the popur guy took you to the Senior Ball and not them. They bully and torment you, just because you don't fit in.

  Fuck children.

  But still… they are scared and alone in a dungeon, just like I was a few days ago. They won't survive the few hours it takes for help to arrive.

  I just want to be alone.

  Ugh.

  Sometimes I hate being an adult, because adults have to be responsible.