unconditionally • yunhwa [COMPLETED]

O

Since it was his first week, they gave Seonghwa the weekend off. Though he declined the offer profusely, saying that at least it gave him something to do, they insisted, saying that he would regret it in the future if he didn't. The rest of the following weeks would involve a 7-day work cycle. "Enjoy it while it lasts," Minho had told him. So today, Seonghwa had woken up at 8am, an hour later than he normally would, and spent the last 10 minutes staring at the ceiling, wondering what the hell he could even do today. The proceeding two hours was spent on catching up on the drama that he had always wanted to watch, cut short due to the sappy romance stuff that he knew he would never experience, followed by 50 minutes of intense gameplay... in a farming game. Fifty minutes later, and he felt like he was gonna waste away. The cows were always hungry. The pigs were always hungry. And who gave a damn about those fucking chickens? They were always hungry. He lined up the production line with butter and cheeses before closing the app and sighing when he noticed the time. It was only 11:05am, he still had more than half the day left.

A mental image of Rapunzel from Tangled formed in his mind as he recollected the song she had sung, where she had done all the chores within 15 minutes. Now that he thought of it, when would HIS life begin, for today? Turns out his stomach would decide for him. As it growled once, he realised he hadn't even eaten breakfast. Now that's a good reason to get out of bed for. He flung back the covers and rolled out of bed, soothing out the sheets before heading to the kitchen. Based on the time, maybe he should have brunch instead. He could always have a snack later, either way. Looking in the pantry and fridge, he decided to have chicken and waffles. First things first, where had he put that trusty waffle iron? He hadn't seen that thing in ages.

A quarter of an hour later, and in a rather hangry state did he vaguely recollect that he had sold it a while back, seeing as he thought he would never use it. Smacking his forehead once as if to reprimand himself for his own stupidity, he preheated the oven before turning back to the counter and began cracking eggs into the mixing bowl. If he couldn't have waffles, he could always have pancakes. After all, pancakes were just waffles without abs. And technically, he didn't care about the abs... that much.

The oven dinged, signalling the preheating was complete. He lined the tray with parchment paper, before laying the frozen chicken strips on top and placing it in the oven. In about 15 minutes, they would be ready. As they were baking, he continued to make the pancake batter, combining the wet and dry ingredients to form a smooth paste. Once the batter was complete, he heated the pan, extremely grateful that he had an induction stove, and poured in the first ladle, ensuring that a smooth, round circle formed. His somewhat OCD couldn't take it if it wasn't perfect. The following ladles were continued in a similar fashion, until the bottom of the bowl could encounter the light once again.

Now that both components of his brunch were ready, he stacked a couple pancakes, topped it with a few pieces of chicken, and drizzled maple syrup over it all. Before tucking in, however, he made sure he got a good shot for his social media posts. Once every mouthful had been devoured, though, he realised he was stuffed, and that he had quite a large amount of food leftover. It wouldn't do to keep it until dinner, they wouldn't taste as good by then. Well, here was his chance to make friends with the neighbours. Looking in the cupboard once again, he located some paper plates and distributed the food equally among two. Now, who to give it to?

The unit to his left had been vacant since a month ago, and it appeared no one had yet to move in. To the right, thankfully, was someone he had encountered before, the first day he moved in. A guy named Hongjoong, as he had introduced himself that very day a month or so prior. Seonghwa picked up the first plate and headed into the hall. The instant he knocked on the door, though, he felt incredibly self-aware, as though this was something he shouldn't be doing. Before he could reconsider and retreat, fortunately and unfortunately, the door to the apartment opened, and to his surprise, the man standing there was not Hongjoong. He was much taller, not that he was height diminishing Hongjoong, and looked pretty intimidating, but when he spoke, his voice, though deep, had a playful lilt to it. "Can I help you?"