Chapter 1
The bell over the café door jingled again, and Dohyun flashed his usual easy smile before he even looked up. It was automatic at this point – muscle memory, like breathing.
“Two caramel lattes and a croissant?” he guessed, already tapping the order into the screen.
The two girls in front of him blinked, half surprised, half delighted.
“You remembered?” one of them asked, a little too shyly.
Dohyun chuckled. “You come every Thursday. I’d be a bad barista if I didn’t.”
When they left – giggling, of course, he went back to wiping down the counter, humming quietly to himself.
The manager had already told him he could clock out early if he wanted. It was almost sunset, and most of the customers were here just for him anyway, not the coffee.
His phone buzzed on the counter. A notification banner lit up the screen.
“Mom’s anniversary.”
Dohyun’s hand paused on the rag. For a second, he just stared at the text like he’d forgotten how to read. The hum in his chest faded.
He locked the screen and shoved the phone into his pocket before the thoughts could stick too long. No point letting them. He’d gotten good at that – keeping busy enough that the silence never caught up.
After all, being useful was easier than being sorry.
It was already dark when he left the café, tie stuffed into his pocket, backpack slung over one shoulder.
The crosswalk light flicked to green, and he stepped off the curb – only to notice someone on the other side, standing still like the world wasn’t moving around him.
A car horn blared.
Before he even thought, Dohyun lunged, grabbing the stranger’s arm and yanking him back. Tires screeched. Someone cursed.
Then silence.
The man he’d just saved blinked at him, not scared, not shaken, just… mildly annoyed.
“What the hell,” the stranger muttered flatly. “Do you mind?”
Dohyun blinked. “Uh- sorry, you almost-”
“I know.” The man sighed, like breathing was effort. “Took me ten minutes to decide to cross, and now I have to do it again.”
“…What?”
“I was finally gonna eat outside for the first time in months,” he continued, deadpan. “But now, thanks to you, I lost the mood.”
And just like that, he turned to leave, mumbling something about wasted calories.
Dohyun stood there, completely thrown. “Wait, what?”
He jogged after him. “Hey, I didn’t mean to-”
When he caught up and reached out, his hand lightly brushed the guy’s sleeve. The stranger spun around, probably ready to snap again – but his face suddenly went pale.
Dohyun’s eyes widened. “Hey-”
The man swayed once, then crumpled forward. Dohyun caught him just before he hit the ground.
“…Seriously?” Dohyun breathed, looking around for help. “You pass out now?”
The stranger’s head lolled against his shoulder. His voice was barely a whisper.
“I’m hungry… and I want to go home.”
“Right. Okay. Great timing,” Dohyun muttered under his breath.
He shifted his weight, crouched down, and somehow managed to get the man onto his back. He was lighter than expected – maybe from skipping too many meals – but still awkward to carry.
Dohyun huffed as he straightened up. “Where’s ‘home,’ huh?”
“Building 305…” came the faint reply, half-conscious.
“Of course it’s uphill,” Dohyun said, already trudging in that direction.
Streetlights flickered overhead as he walked, each one pooling light over the uneven pavement. For once, he wasn’t smiling – but there was something about the situation that almost made him want to laugh anyway.
“Who even are you?” he asked quietly, adjusting his grip.
No answer. Just soft breathing against his shoulder.
Dohyun sighed. “Guess I’ll find out later.”
And so he kept walking.
By the time Dohyun reached the building, his shirt was clinging to his back and his breath came out in uneven bursts.
“Of course you live on a hill,” he muttered, adjusting the weight on his shoulders. “Of course.”
The security guard at the lobby blinked when he saw him carrying someone.
“Oh- him again?” the guard said, standing up quickly. “Apartment 1003. He tends to, uh… forget to eat.”
Dohyun blinked, sweat dripping down his temple. “Again?”
The guard just gave a helpless shrug. “Happens more often than you’d think.”
Dohyun stared at the unconscious man on his back – clean clothes, expensive watch, living in a high-end building – and frowned. “He doesn’t look like someone who skips meals.”
The elevator was thankfully empty, the soft hum filling the silence as they went up. The moment the doors opened, the guy suddenly shifted, mumbling something about being home. Before Dohyun could say anything, he felt the weight lift off his back.
The man surprisingly steady on his feet now, brushed off his clothes like nothing happened.
“Thanks,” he said flatly, lifting a hand to tap a few numbers on the digital lock.
The door beeped once before sliding open.
Dohyun just stood there, still catching his breath. “Uh… sure.”
The guy opened his door, half turned, and was about to shut it when Dohyun’s hand shot out instinctively to stop it.
They both froze.
“What,” the man said, voice dry and clearly done with the day.
Dohyun didn’t even know why he stopped him. The words came out before his brain caught up.
“Can I… get a glass of water?”
There was a brief silence. The man squinted at him, then sighed like it was the biggest inconvenience in the world. “…Fine. Come in.”
Dohyun stepped inside, kicking off his shoes. “You know,” he said cautiously, “you really shouldn’t let strangers into your house so easily.”
“Then get out,” came the casual reply as the man walked off toward the kitchen.
Dohyun blinked. “…Right. Noted.”
The apartment was nice – high ceilings, big windows, probably smelled good when it wasn’t filled with empty snack wrappers and crumpled laundry. It was the kind of space that screamed money but somehow felt… lonely.
The man walked over to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water, his movements slow but precise, like even that took effort.
“Do you live alone?” Dohyun asked, watching him.
The guy raised an eyebrow. “Why, planning to rob me?”
Dohyun sighed. “Just asking.”
Right.
Conversation: hopeless.
When the man handed him the glass, his tone was as flat as ever. “I know it’s messy. You don’t have to say it.”
“I wasn’t gonna,” Dohyun lied quickly, though his eyes had definitely been wandering over the cluttered table and the pile of unopened mail on the counter.
The guy dropped onto the couch with a low groan, half-buried in a blanket. “You can leave when you’re done. I’m gonna figure out if I wanna eat those chips again or not.”
Dohyun looked at him – this man who’d just nearly been hit by a car, passed out, and now was debating whether to eat snacks like it was the hardest decision in the world.
He should leave. Really.
But instead… he found himself saying,
“Do you… want me to cook something for you?”
The words left his mouth before his brain could stop them.
The man – who’d looked half-dead five seconds ago, suddenly sat up, eyes wide.
“Really?!” he said, like a kid who just got told Christmas came early.
Dohyun froze.
The smile that spread across the man’s face was so bright, so unexpectedly pure, that for a moment, it knocked the air right out of him.
People had always told Dohyun his smile was beautiful – customers, coworkers, strangers, but this was the first time he found someone else’s smile so beautiful it made him forget to breathe.
It was… captivating.
All he managed to do was nod.
The man’s grin widened. “Then, I’ll eat whatever you make.”
He swallowed. “Guess I don’t have a choice now.”
And for the first time that night, the apartment didn’t feel quite so cold.
The man’s smile lingered for a moment before he flopped back down onto the couch, looking satisfied just from the idea of food.
Dohyun scratched the back of his neck, still not entirely sure how he’d ended up here. “I’ll, uh… see what you’ve got in the kitchen.”
“Knock yourself out,” the man mumbled, eyes half-closed.
Dohyun took a few steps toward the kitchen, glancing around at the messy but expensive apartment.
Empty boxes, unopened packages, a half-finished puzzle on the table. It felt strange – like this guy had everything but didn’t know what to do with it.
As he was checking the fridge for something edible, he heard a lazy voice behind him.
“Hey.”
He turned. The man was watching him from the couch, chin propped on his armrest.
“What’s your name?”
Dohyun blinked, then smiled a little. “Dohyun. Seo Dohyun.”
The man nodded slowly, as if filing it away. “Hmm. Dohyun.” He said it like he was testing the sound. “Alright. Got it.”
There was a quiet beat – not awkward, just… still.
Dohyun glanced back toward him. “And you? Are you gonna tell me yours, or do I have to guess?”
The man yawned, pulling the blanket over his head. “Jaerim.” His voice was muffled but clear enough. “Kang Jaerim.”
Dohyun’s lips twitched into a small smile. “Nice to meet you, Jaerim.”
“Yeah, yeah.” The reply came out half-asleep. “Don’t burn my kitchen.”
Dohyun laughed under his breath and turned back to the counter, pulling ingredients out one by one.
Outside, the city lights flickered softly through the window. It felt a little less lonely – like something was quietly beginning.
