The day started normal—until it didn’t.

Chloé slid out of bed with practiced grace, stretching like a cat before padding into the shared dorm’s living space. Katarina was already there, perched on a stool like some regal, sadistic bird of prey, fork spearing eggs with military precision.

No sign of their roommate.

Weird.

Their roommate's plate sat rinsed in the sink—they’d eaten and bolted. A second plate waited on the counter, eggs and bacon neatly arranged beside a handwritten note:

"For you two."

Pathetic. Deliciously so.

Katarina smirked around a bite. "Maybe we should wake up earlier," she mused, voice thick with mock thoughtfulness. "Wouldn’t want to miss our favorite little mouse."

Chloé rolled her eyes so hard it almost hurt. "Or," she countered, slamming the bathroom door behind her, "we corner them on campus and make sure they never dodge us again."

Campus was its usual circus—whispers followed them, eyes darted away, the air itself bending around their presence. But no sign of their roommate.

"Damn," Katarina muttered, scanning the crowds with the sharp focus of a sniper. "They’re good. Should’ve played hide-and-seek like this from the start."

Chloé’s nails dug into her palms. "They have to come back to the dorm eventually."

Katarina’s grin turned knife-edged. "What if they don’t?"

"Then—" Chloé’s voice cracked, frustration boiling over. "—fuck! What do you want, Kat? Hunt them down just to call them 'worthless' again? Wow. Groundbreaking."

A beat. Then Katarina shrugged, turning on her heel. "Fine. Let’s go. They’ll slip up—and then?" Her smile promised pain. "We’ll teach them what happens when they forget their place."

---

Back in the dorm, Katarina sprawled across the couch like a lazy panther, one foot propped on the armrest as her thumb scrolled endlessly on her phone. Chloé, meanwhile, paced like a caged animal in front of the door, arms crossed, heel tapping a violent staccato into the floor.

"Are you just gonna loom there like an upset mom?" Katarina drawled, not even looking up.

"Ugh! I’m just—" Chloé’s hands flew up. "—pissed they avoided us! Like we’re nothing!"

Katarina’s laugh was a silver bullet. "Aww. You worried about them~?"

Wrong move.

Chloé lunged.

In seconds, they were a tangle of limbs—Katarina cackling as Chloé wrestled her, half-serious, all fury—until—

Click.

The door swung open.

And there their roommate stood, frozen mid-step, eyes wide like a deer in headlights.

Chloé was on them in a heartbeat. "Ugh! Where were you? I wanted to ruin you all day!" Her voice dripped venom—but her grip on their wrist was too tight, her glare too desperate.

Behind her, Katarina stretched like a satisfied cat, phone still in hand. "Mm. Welcome home, loser~" Her grin was all teeth. "Let’s have some fun."

Maybe they should’ve stayed missing.