37

Apex Villa...

In one of the apartments in the villa, the TV was playing an announcement posted by the Sunset Daily broadcasting station. A figure slouched across the long sofa like a depressed soul, matching the black hoodie he wore. The room was quite dark, with only the mild light from the TV, as all the curtains were drawn. It wasn’t until the door opened that a few rays of light managed to enter.

“Noah!” Lauren’s voice boomed as she strode directly to the curtains and pulled them apart one by one. She turned to him, placing her hands on her waist. “I told you to stop sitting in the dark like this. Are you trying to make yourself depressed?”

“I am depressed,” Noah replied, without looking away from the announcement that had been playing on repeat.

Lauren frowned as she approached him. “No, you’re not. You should be strong in times like this so you can fight back.”

Noah didn’t respond, which made her sigh. She sat down. “We already knew this was going to happen, didn’t we? It’s like