A/N: Y'all are correct 'bout Johnny! Here's some more drama in the mix! Enjoy! Bon appetit~

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Typically, voodoo dolls and hexes weren't something that Lenora concerned herself with. She was a devout atheist from birth, and couldn't see herself changing that in the near future. Ghost stories and clairvoyant tales were simply things made to give her nightmares and that was that.

But Johnny Tran...Boy oh boy was that man pushing her limits. In just a month of her stay in LA, Lenora was starting to believe that someone cursed her for all eternity. She didn't bother looking at the two other people in front of her, because all she could see was the man who pointed a gun at her, jumped her in an alleyway, and then threatened to blow up her friend, standing right in front of her porch with a suitcase in hand like he was about to board the first class train to Brattown.

She stared at him, and he stared back. But unlike her, Johnny held no emotion, not even a hint of surprise. Any trace of aggression or annoyance from their previous encounter was gone, replaced by a blank look, which surprisingly ticked her off even more.

Her brows twitched and her fingers trembled. Lenora imagined herself slamming the door in their faces and proceeding to cancel the lease while petitioning for a new identity. There was no fucking way that he was one of the friends helping Kaya move in. This was her place now, and she wasn't about to let some scummy ass, wannabe greaser step into her safe haven.

But the little fantasy was soon brought to an end when Kaya's voice knocked her back into her body. Lenora looked on with horror when she came to the reality that she was still wearing her onesie, this time in front of the town jackass. She wasn't sure if the heat on her face was from anger or embarrassment.

"You're Lenora, right?" The young, Asian woman with wavy brown hair smiled at her shyly. And that was all it took to squash any amount of courage Lenora had cooped up. She blinked at the woman in front of her, as if just realizing she was her new housemate.

"Yeah, it's me," she forced out. "Um, nice to meet you." The way her voice turned to a squeak at the end made her grimace. She looked over Kaya and saw another woman standing besides him. Ink black hair framed her pretty face in tight curls, with her large, brown eyes staring up in curiosity.

"That's Marie-Ann and Johnathan," Kaya said, following her gaze to the two behind her. "They're the friends I was talking about yesterday. I hope you don't mind!"

Lenora thought her head was going to burst under the pressure. Of course I fucking mind! Get him off my lawn!

But despite her raging insides, she gave a tight smile and nodded. A storm brewed in her mind as she went over the ways she could make this end faster. She couldn't just shoo Kaya's friends off the property, that'd create more bad blood than she would want. But she also didn't want to be in his presence for a second longer.

"Um, can we come in?" Kaya shuffled her feet. Lenora mentally slapped herself; as if the day couldn't get any crazier, now she seemed like a territorial nutjob who's engaging her roommate in a staring contest.

She cleared her throat. "Of course." Lenora whipped around so fast her world spun. She stood to the side as Kaya smiled and grabbed a luggage, motioning the other two to follow. Marie-Ann brought in a suitcase while Johnny hauled in a larger one. Meanwhile, Lenora watched as the trio moved the cases around the living room. The two women were oblivious to the glaring daggers she tossed at the back of his head.

Clenching her fists, she turned towards the kitchen and sped off. A glass of iced water should calm her down enough to interact normally with them. As much as she wanted to shove Johnny out the house, Kaya didn't deserve the fire she was gonna spew out. The best she could do was play civil, and it seemed like Johnny himself wasn't going to take any drastic actions, too. That meant she had to stay polite, else she'd come across as some stuck up snob who hated people.

Counting to ten while focusing on her imaginary favorite place, Lenora inhaled and stepped out of the kitchen. Marie-Ann and Kaya were busy unzipping the suitcases while Johnny was nowhere to be found. She breathed a sigh of relief and went over, remembering her promise to help Kaya unpack.

"I'm really sorry about this," Kaya said, "I wanted to move in sooner to save us the hassle but my parents got into some stuff and wouldn't let me."

Lenora was at a loss for words. She hadn't thought she came across as pissy to everyone; a twinge of guilt rose as she bent down with the others. "It's fine. I really don't mind. You guys just caught me waking up, that's all."

Kaya's shy smile turned confident. "Not a morning person?"

"Nope," Lenora admitted, "although school's been drilling me so I gotta grind in the mornings, too." She helped the two women bring up a table set and clothing rack. Marie-Ann was quiet through most of it, not really interacting with her as much. Not that Lenora expected her to be, the latter of the two seemed to be more recluse compared to the bubbly Kaya.

"It's my first time moving out, so I thought I upset you back there. Thank god all's good." Kaya beamed at her from the stairs.

You didn't upset me. Your buddy did. Lenora shrugged and tried to look as nonchalant as possible. Thank goodness Johnny had disappeared into his shithole.

She then assisted Marie-Ann in dismembering the paper boxes and shelving them into the attic. Lenora frowned when she started glancing around the building like she's never seen an apartment. Her eyes widened slightly in mild confusion at the water heater stemming from the crowded space.

"Never seen anything like that before," Marie-Ann commented.

"You've never been in an attic?" Lenora did her best not to sound surprised. It was bizarre to hear that a person their age would be awed at the sight of something so ordinary. Did she never play hide and seek with her friends during playdates? Overall, Marie-Ann seemed nice, like Kaya, and Lenora couldn't wrap her head around seeing Johnny with them.

Or they could be faking it. People do that, too, smart one.

At that thought, she prayed that Kaya wasn't going to turn one eighty and become another headache to deal with. She still had two years in this house before she graduated, and she'd prefer graduating alive.

Kaya had called out to them from the bottom, prompting the two to clamber down the stairs to the main part of the flat. Her roommate was balancing a large headboard on her shoulders, and by the looks of it, it wasn't a nice feeling.

Lenora shoved all thoughts on Johnny aside and rushed to her aide. Kaya breathed out in relief as the pressure was lessened, and she turned to Marie-Ann.

"We can go get the other parts, Marie," she explained. "Johnny, can you help Lenora carry the headboard upstairs?"

Lenora's blood ran cold at the statement, and she snapped her eyes up to meet his as he walked towards her. She glared at him with Kaya's back turned. He paid her no mind and disreagrded her, then smiled very kindly to his friend. It looked so out of place to her she almost had to rub her eyes to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.

Him? Kind? And she was the president of the United States. Her instincts told her to haul the massive wooden board up by herself, but who was she kidding. Unless she fancied a trip to the hospital with a fractured spine, she needed a shit ton of help.

She was so lost in her musings that she didn't hear his footsteps approach her struggling form. Lenora felt the weight of the piece reduce and she gasped for breath. Where did Kaya get this bed frame?! It was like a ton of bricks compared to her measly, Ikea set. She felt her hands slip and she fought to keep her grip.

"Grab the top," Johnny said lowly. "Or you'll crush your fingers."

"You'd love that, wouldn't you?" Lenora couldn't keep her cool anymore and the snark flew out like it was made for this. It was a harmless comment, even helpful, in fact. But she knew that with him, there was only condescension and arrogance. Kaya and Marie had already disappeared outside, leaving the two of them behind. Lenora gritted her teeth.

Johnny didn't respond, he was looking toward upstairs where they were headed. Slowly, they established a balance as they ascended the steps. At least he was gentle with handling the item.

With his abrasive character, Lenora was surprised that he didn't just toss the thing like debris. It made her want to cry when she learned there were more of those down stairs. And like so, they alternated from up to down, hauling the individual pieces to Kaya's room.

She couldn't believe it; one moment he was threatening her livelihood, and the next he was helping her put together furniture. If there was a competition for the greatest mindfuck of all time, this was it.

It didn't make things better to know that Kaya had decided to work on putting her desk together with Marie, officially pinning Lenora next to the wretched man for the next hour. She huffed, not caring if he heard it. If she was going to be stuck with him, she might as well shed all social constructs. He rarely glanced her way, and when he did, it was to see what she was doing.

He's probably kicking himself for calling it so soon! I bet he wants to shoot himself for having to see me again.

She knew that it was wishful thinking, because someone like Johnny Tran wouldn't spare a second glance at any other person on the streets due to his pea-sized brain. The image of that did happen to elicit a small snort from her, though she didn't care if he heard it.

It's not like he can do anything to me here. Or anytime soon, unless he wants his friends knowing his two-faced life.

The idea dawned on her and she couldn't help but smirk. It was clear to her that no matter how much Johnny wanted to blow up the world for having his little territory crossed again, he still had an image to uphold. And she was dying to know how outraged he must be to know that she had settled in so comfortably in his lovely neighborhood. Karma had never tasted so sweet in her life.

"Woman, hey, woman!" His agitated voice pulled her from her daydreams. "You're doing it wrong."

Throwing him a look, she scowled. "Pardon me?" Lenora gazed at the material in her hands and saw nothing amiss. Brat was trying to fuck with her again. Paying him no attention, she resumed her work.

By the looks of his tensed jaw and rigid shoulder, she knew he also had some bottling up in the making. She snorted; she wasn't responsible for his fragile ego. Had he been polite and not threatened people, he wouldn't have ended up like this.

She screwed the leg onto the main frame of the bed, but was caught by total surprise when a shadow loomed over her. Shrieking, she bolted upright and away from him.

"The hell?!"

Johnny's blank face didn't change. "I said you're doing it wrong."

Lenora gripped the pillar so hard her knuckles bled white. She turned to see if Kaya and Marie were around, and thankfully they weren't. Moving her mouth, she prepared a whole speech to blast him. Now that they were on her turf, she had zero tolerance for his shit.

"I'll have you know-! W-wait! What are you-?!"

Her words were cut off as he knelt down in front and proceeded to take the item away. Studying the set, he pushed a piece of paper into her view.

"Read the directions, and quit daydreaming." Johnny didn't even bother to face her as he spoke. Against better judgement, Lenora threw a cursory glance at the instruction sheet. Her eyes glazed over the general words, and she winced in humiliation as she realized she had forgotten to insert a small piece of the leg onto the frame before screwing the main parts together. Her snide retort died down immediately and she contemplated hurling herself off the nearest cliff.

Every time he was around, she always managed to embarrass herself to no end. First was getting drunk, second was her growling stomach, and now she can't even read properly. She was supposed to appear independent and intelligent, but all that came out looking like she'd been screwing around under a cave her whole life.

Peering at him, she noticed he had taken his jacket off, revealing a matching black muscle tee. Her eyes squinted. Does the dude not have any other colors in the closet? She wouldn't think he could be like this judging from his previous behavior; if anything, all she was subjected to in this town was mind fuck over mind fuck.

Lenora watched on as he took hold of the materials and unscrewed them, suddenly aware of the way his biceps rippled underneath his bronze skin. His eyes were focused on the project at hand, face stern yet serene.

He's kinda cute. Her brain popped its final hinges and squawked a pathetic remark. Twitching, she squandered it without question. She wondered how depraved one must be to find someone with the likes of him attractive.

Johnny was a brute through and through, and Lenora wasn't going to let a good lighting from the sun change her opinions. In the end, she blamed it on the LA heat. The weather was known to cause mood swings in people, so why wouldn't she? She did a double-take. Why wasn't the air conditioner doing its job?!

At the thought, she stood up and trudged to the machine situated on top of the room. Lenora was sure she had turned on all available AC's in the house, seeing that the temperature was going to rise to a new high this week. And fair enough, there was no wind blowing from the ventilators. Frowning, she grabbed the remote and pressed the power button. The device buzzed awake, but quieted as soon as it was turned on.

"Why you little…" she hiss under her breath. Her fingers jammed the buttons again, but to no avail. The machine had gone back to its slumber, not caring about the frantic woman underneath. The landlord had told her that all the appliances were newly installed prior to her moving in, so it couldn't be related to its age. She checked the battery, and it was fine. Then she checked the cables connecting to the AC, but those were fine, too.

She was on the brink of a breakdown when it dawned on her that she needed to call the landlord and schedule an appointment with the furnace repairman. She couldn't afford to wait, seeing that it was going to get unbearable fast. In her jumbled state, she noticed a dark figure moving to her spot.

Johnny had finished the rest of the setup while she was hovering around her worshipped baby. He took the remote from her, not waiting to ask. Lenora jumped at the sudden contact and glowered at him. Why did he keep sneaking up to her like that? Does he think it looked cool or something?

"Piss off!" She tried to grab it from him, but he swiftly dodged her hands and stepped away. A smug grin played at his lips, and she felt her veins popping. "Johnny gimme the damn remote or so help me-"

"The circuit breaker is tripped." The explanation came out of nowhere and she was stunned into silence. She gaped at him as if he just said he wanted to watch My Little Pony. Sputtering, she pointed at the device.

"Huh?"

Johnny closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh like he was about to scold a child. "When the unit doesn't turn on, it's usually because the circuit breaker has been tripped. When that happens, you can reset it after locating the circuit breaker panel and redo the thermostat."

Okay. She did not get any of that. Lenora huffed and crossed her arms. "English please."

He gave her a look that said she was stupid. "You need to reset the circuit."

Lenora snorted, eyeing him warily. "See! You don't have to be a smartass to be understood." Snatching the remote back, she glowered at him. He didn't retort...He didn't even say anything as he turned around towards the patio. Johnny was acting as if they really were just two strangers with no previous history. The eerie quietness from him was beginning to alarm her as she watched from behind. What was he doing?

The voice inside screamed at her to follow, and she happily obeyed. She found him studying the circuit box. He had crouched down to the machine, hands feeling up the sides of it. Her loud footsteps caught his attention, and he turned to her.

"What're you doing here?" It didn't sound like a rhetorical question.

Lenora scoffed. "What do you think? Making sure the local terrorist doesn't plant a bomb in my house." With her hands on her hips, she looked at him expectantly. Though to be fair, a small voice in her mind did suggest he was going to do just that.

She waited for the ice to break; there was no way the greaser was going to pretend everything was fine with that personality of his. He stared at her, his eyes twitching slightly, and she knew she got to him. A swell of pride grew as she sauntered closer. This is payback for the last two times, asshole!

The silence between the stretched on, and as it continued, her frustration rose. Before her, Johnny canted his head to the side, and his gaze never left hers. A slight smirk etched onto his lips, and he turned right back to work.

"I'm starting to think you're just very fucking lucky," he grated. "You happen to be on Dom's part of town, and I've agreed to not cause trouble here." Despite his calm exterior, Lenora knew the edge in his voice signified his waning patience. Finally, he wasn't going to play house anymore.

"I think I'd rather not have that kind of luck," she hissed. "Had I known earlier, I would've packed up and left."

Johnny laughed. "Don't get your panties in a twist, Lennie. I'm just trying to fix your AC."

She almost lost her temper at that. "What did you just call me?!"

He whistled a jovial tune, and pretended not to hear. Lenora grounded her teeth and stormed up to him. He still didn't acknowledge her, hands taking a hold of the circuit box and dissembling it in a few pulls. The snarky comment she had prepared was pushed down as she watched him disconnect the breakers and press a few keys. After another awkward silence, he reconnected the circuits and reassembled the box.

The machine whirred to life once again, but this time, it stayed on. Johnny sighed, almost contentedly. Lenora gawked as he stood up. Once they returned back to the house, he motioned to the remote.

"Try it again."

Hesitating, she pressed the power button. And voila...the AC's blue light blinked awake and began its filtration of cool air. She was dumbstruck and in awe; if it weren't for him, she would've had to wait another week for the mechanic to arrive. But by then, all that would be left of her is a puddle.

"Uh, thank you." Lenora tried her best not to look at him. She decided that the insult could be used at a later date, if she ever happened upon him again, that is. And she was going to be extra careful not to.

Johnny looked smug. "The pleasure's all mine, Lennie."

She gritted her teeth. "I'll let that slide this time."

It didn't appear to deter him, as he scoffed and made his way out of the room. The bed was finished, and the AC was fixed. To her, that was huge progress in a day, and she felt partially grateful for the extra hands that came. Had this been up to two people, it would've taken the whole day.

Speaking of which, Lenora checked the clock. It was hitting early noon and she found herself craving her next meal. More than four hours had passed, and she didn't even feel it. Kaya and Marie were conversing below by the time she had finished tidying up the last residues of cardboard boxes.

Marie was whispering something to Johnny on the side, and that irked her. But she paid it no mind as she threw out the last pieces of trash. And with that, she turned to Kaya with a full beam.

"It's finished. Did you need anything else?"

Her roommate shook her head, smiling. "No, I'm done. Thank you so much for the bed, though!"

A reminder popped into her head, and Lenora handed her a set of keys. "Here, these are the house keys. One for the front and one for the back. Don't lose it or the landlord will have you pay a hundred to replace it."

Kaya accepted them with a nod. "Got it!"

At the sight, Lenora looked at her, secretly hoping for her to send off her friends now that the move-in shenanigan was over. She still had to walk to downtown for groceries and figure out a lunch menu. Maybe she could find an excuse to leave.

"Well, I'm getting hungry," Lenora started, "and the fridge is empty. So I think I'll be heading downtown. If there's anything you need, just shoot me a text!" It sounded like a decent exit plan, but Kaya piped up just as she was about to turn around.

"Wanna grab lunch together then?" her roommate clasped her hands together like a prayer. Kaya smiled shyly, almost like she was nervous of being rejected. Lenora had to stop herself from screaming no. She flashed a look to the man standing besides them, but his face was back to being duller than a rock. Johnny might as well become a statue with that expression.

"I have to get groceries after," she added quickly.

Kaya smiled even brighter. "Awesome! Johnny is driving us to the mall anyways. So we can stop by the market, if that's what you want. I just wanna get to know you better! You were a great help."

Lenora insides were shouting a thousand curses at the man. Here she thought the ordeal was ending, and now the universe wanted her to suffer some more. She wasn't sure who to get mad at at that point. But she didn't want to make Kaya feel like she did anything wrong either. The woman was decent in her time here so far and appeared to be an upstanding citizen. This made Lenora feel like she was rejecting a lost puppy.

"Ok, that sounds good." She accepted the invitation before her brain could register what had happened. It was going to be one lunch together with her roommate, and it wasn't going to get more complicated than that.

Johnny's eyes widened a fraction at her response, but he remained silent. Besides him, Marie gave her a small smile. Lenora nodded awkwardly in response, and bit her lip.

"Do you like Pho?" Kaya asked.

She wasn't sure if she ever heard of the name before, so she shook her head. Johnny, on the other hand, frowned.

"Kaya, are you sure you wanna go there? There's other places, y'know." It might've been a harmless suggestion to the other two. But Lenora could see his shoulders tensing.

"But they have the best noodles!" Kaya protested. "Lenora's gonna love it there! You said this is your first time in LA, right?"
"Yeah." Lenora was confused as to where the conversation was headed.

Her answer spurred her roommate on. "Then you should try Happy Huong Noodles! It's really good!"

She glanced at Johnny, and then back at Kaya in a daze. "So...Where is it?

Kaya pulled out a pamphlet and pointed at a general area. "It's by the Little Saigon area. There's plenty of grocery markets around it. We can stop there if you want!"

Oh fuck no… Lenora gawked at the map. And that was when it hit her; it was the exact place the greaser had threatened her in last week. It was the very place Johnny himself had told her to stay away from. The cues were all coming together, no wonder why he wanted to go somewhere else. The man couldn't just have his territory stepped on after explicitly telling her to fuck off. It would be too much for his ego to bear.

The petty comeback was too good to pass on, and she was sure he knew it by the glare he was sending her. Lenora eyed Kaya with renewed interest.

"You're recommending this place?" She batted her eyelids innocently for good measure.

Kaya grinned. "The name's funky, but I promise the food's good."

Lenora wanted so badly to cackle with glee at Johnny's perturbed expression. Why use the mouth to insult when you could get a meal and crash the place with his best buddies? She was delirious with triumph at the thought.

"I love all kinds of food," she said, with a bit too much enthusiasm, "I'd love to go there! Count me in!" Her wide grin pinched the corners of her eyes, but she ignored it.

This is what you fucking get for calling me Lennie, bitch.

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A/N: At least no one lost a limb during these trying times...yet. Next up, a very awkward lunch ensues. Drop it in the comments in how you think that's gonna play out ;)