This group call was pure chaos—filled with noise and laughter.
Pyramid picked up with his usual flat tone.
"What do you want?"
"What else," Rome muttered lazily.
"Borrow money from your mom," Versailles chimed in like it was the most normal thing in the world.
Rey chuckled under his breath before tossing a weird little game at them.
"Alright, guess where I am."
Pyramid blinked. "Just guess?"
"Nope. If you get it wrong, you pay." Rey grinned, voice sharp with mischief.
Rome groaned. "I' m sleepy, man."
"Don' t sleep yet~ guess first." Rey dragged out his voice like a brat.
Rome shook his head, eyes half-closed. "Norway."
Rey narrowed his eyes. "Nope."
Versailles jumped in. "Russia."
Rey snorted. "Wrong again."
Pyramid threw out a wild card. "Burma."
"You son of a bitch!" Rey burst out.
Rome raised his hand. "Wait—was that at me?"
Rey laughed like a maniac.
"They' re at war! Pay up, ten grand each."
Everyone cracked up—because Rey was always that guy who could mess around even when his own heart wasn' t in the best place. Choices, secrets, differences didn' t matter here. The friendship was always a full hundred, never less.
The howling wind outside mixed with their voices, but the tension in the air was gone. For a moment, they were just kids again, forgetting work and the mess of the world.
"What kind of dumbass question is this? Feels like Monopoly," Rome mumbled, sounding half-asleep and ready to hang up.
"Shut up. Ten grand each." Versailles fanned himself with a gray banknote, playing the rich guy act.
"Make it a hundred K," Rey teased, gulping like a starving man at the sight of sweets.
"Where' s the block button for this idiot?" Pyramid muttered, raspy voice low as he kept gaming, some mystery hand tugging his head off-screen every few minutes. Everyone already knew who it was.
"Relax, kid. Hey Versailles, you married yet?" Rey suddenly turned his teasing on the rich one.
"Not yet, asshole," Versailles replied in that silky, noble tone that made the others burst into laughter.
"Damn. Want me to hook you up?" Rey bared his teeth in a wolfish grin, half-joking, half-serious, watching for the cash.
"Hook me up with who?" Versailles asked, sounding reluctant but still listening.
"A Finnish kid."
Rome stirred from his drowsiness. "Wait, you' re in Finland?"
"Yep. Chasing the Northern Lights. Met someone… felt a spark. But hey, I' ve already got a wife, so I didn' t go there. Thought I' d offer him to my bros instead." Rey' s voice turned playful, mimicking a cartoon.
"Bullshit. Midji said there' s someone wearing a necklace just like yours in Saliselkä," Rome shot back immediately.
"Oh… really?" Rey' s face turned smugly innocent.
" 'Really' my ass," Pyramid cut in sharply, suspicious now.
"What kid?" Rome asked again, curiosity beating out his sleep.
Rey smirked. "Wanna see? I took a pic while he was shoveling snow. Looks good, huh?"
"Free?" Versailles asked instantly.
"Five grand," Rey fired back without hesitation.
"Five thousand baht or five thousand rubles?" Pyramid snapped, irritated.
"Why the hell is the block button so hard to find on this phone…"
"Show me," Versailles said, pretending it was a game.
Rey laughed. "Done!" and sent the photo.
Ding ding ding—notifications flooded the chat.
"Huh…" Pyramid' s jaw fell.
"Hm?" Rome squinted through half-shut eyes.
"Heh," Versailles narrowed his gaze, smirk curling, eyes glinting—not like he liked the kid, but like he' d seen an ex he once ruined.
"What' s with you guys?" Rey laughed cluelessly.
"Cute kid, gotta admit," Versailles said flatly.
"How' d you even meet him?" Rome pressed.
"Right at the entrance. He was out shoveling snow, like some NPC in a game," Rey said cheerfully.
"Your photography' s improved," Pyramid remarked dryly, though a hand slipped into frame to pass him a steaming cup—someone' s hand.
"Hey, I' m a pro," Rey puffed his chest.
"Pro my ass. The only thing you shoot is nudes of yourself," Versailles snapped.
Rey just grinned. "So what? Who wants him? I' ll play matchmaker, free of charge."
"Free?"
"Hourly, daily, weekly—I' ll arrange anything," Rey cackled, sounding more like a pimp than a friend.
"Pathetic," Pyramid spat.
Ding – Rome blocked you.
Ding – Pyramid blocked you.
"What the fuck, why' d Midji block me?" Rey shouted.
"Probably his man blocked you," Versailles replied smoothly, chuckling under his breath.
"Oh shit, forgot he' s taken. Jealous hubby, huh? Hehehe." Rey' s laugh turned deranged.
"Send more. I' ll buy," Versailles said suddenly, serious this time.
"Ah, Versailles my love! I fucking love you, man. Send the cash—I' ll hire the kid as my guide through the snow, the woods, everywhere." Rey laughed like a lunatic.
"Nice eye color. I like it," Versailles muttered slowly.
Rey froze. "…Eye color?" His tone shifted, suddenly quiet.
The chat, once filled with chaotic laughter and curses, seemed to stumble. Something in Versailles' s words made Rey feel uneasy. Finland wasn' t just another stop.
The Next Day
Rey stepped out of the cabin. The crisp air hit his lungs like ice, the scent of pine biting sharp. He zipped his jacket all the way up—then spotted that same kid from yesterday, shoveling snow again.
"Hey, kid!" Rey called, raising his voice against the muffled hush of snow.
"Yeah?" The boy looked up, pale face, nose red from the cold, big dark eyes and full lips. Not the pale blue-eyed type like most Finns. For some reason, Rey remembered Versailles' s words about his eyes.
"This whole cabin' s just one house?" Rey scanned the silent, wooden lodge. No other guests, no staff, just the boy.
"It' s a homestay." The kid kept shoveling like it was no big deal, unfazed by being alone with a foreign guest.
"So no one else? No staff? Just you?"
"Yes." The way he looked back said: What' s wrong with me?
"My service not good enough?"
Rey raised both hands in surrender. "No, no—you' re good, man. Too good. Actually… how about taking me around for some shots today?"
He stretched out his palm like a spoiled brat. "Gimme your number. I only got cash from last night, no bills on me."
The kid typed it in: 0401232499.
Rey frowned. "…How much?"
"Depends how many days."
"Every day."
"Two thousand euros." His tone was flat, like he was just stating the weather.
Rey choked. "Holy shit, seventy-five K? Cut me half."
The boy' s eyes flicked up. "Five days, then."
"What, you gonna carry me around at that price?" Rey snapped back.
"That' s the lowest rate."
Rey sighed, sweating in the freezing cold. "Fine, five days…" He wired the money.
"This number—you picked it yourself?"
"Someone picked it for me."
Rey paused, uneasy. "…What' s your name, kid?"
The boy smiled faintly. "Aivain."
"Finnish? What does it mean?"
"Something important."
Rey went quiet, staring at him. "…Nice."
WHOOSH!
The power went out. Darkness swallowed the cabin.
"Fuck—power' s out," Rey swore.
Aivain turned to him, calm as ever. "Poor guy."
"You little—what the hell?" Rey barked, but the boy only chuckled softly.
"Power' s out."
"I can see that. So what, we gonna freeze?"
"Come sit by the fireplace."
"Seriously? No backup generator?"
"It broke. Same time you showed up."
"…The hell? Fine." Rey plopped down by the fire, the boy sitting close beside him.
The crackle of burning wood filled the silence. Rey glanced over. "What did you mean— 'just showed up' ?"
"No one usually stays here."
"You talk like you were waiting for me."
The boy only shrugged. Rey stared, lips twitching.
"How old are you?"
"…Not telling." Aivain stared into the flames.
"Little shit," Rey muttered, teeth gritted, before lunging at him