The third ballad (Kingdom's Louis Fanficiton)

1 - A warm welcome

I rubbed my arms and sucked in a sharp breath. Which I regretted immediately: The night air was incredibly cold. Of course, it was almost February. I shivered once again. "Your apartment wasn't affected but I'm afraid you won't be able to enter the next days", the responsible fireman told me. At least something. I wouldn't have been able to afford all the necessary stuff for daily living soon. "Thanks", I smiled. When the alarm woke me up, I only had time to grab my bag and rushed out. That meant I had the absolute necessity with me: Smartphone, wallet, extern hard disc, keys and – since I just came back from my parents – some used clothes. At least. I yawned and looked at my phone. After updating my parents, I checked my cousin's last message. I had been lucky he was still awake. He allowed me to come over. Good. One problem left to solve: I wasn't exactly keen on walking there with only my comfy clothes on. I would probably turn into an ice cube before reaching his house. And I hated taking cabs. I sighed and decided to wander over to my neighbours who were responsible for all this. I grinned as I heard one of them scolding the others. "I told you not to try that again. I am the only one who will cook in this household, did you hear?", Seoho just said as I reached him. "Calm down, I think they understood you well enough now", I interfered and he turned to me, stressed. "I was away for just a few hours and when I came back I see this. How would you react?", he asked reproachful. I shrugged. "I bet Keonhee and Hwawoong didn't do it on purpose", I yawned again, "However, what do you plan on doing now? You can't go back in your apartment as well, I reckon?" Seoho shook his head. "We'll sleep in the company", he explained, "And you?" "My cousin allowed me in", I answered, "I just don't know how to get there." "Should we take you along?", he asked right away. Just how I thought he would. "Only if it really isn't an inconvenience", I said honestly. He shook his head: "It's alright. Take it as a payback for causing you trouble." "Then I'd really appreciate it", I smiled shyly. "Sure, we will do that", Seoho grinned and nudged me.

I compared the address on the building with the one my cousin sent me. It fit, so I shrugged my shoulders and texted him to open the door. He insisted on me not ringing the doorbell so that I wouldn't disturb any neighbours. A few seconds later, he opened the door and I beamed at him. "Hi", he grinned. Instead of greeting him back, I pulled him into a hug. "Nice to see you again, Seungbo", I said. We had been pretty close as kids and I haven't seen him in forever. "I missed you", I stated after letting go of him while following him inside and up the stairs. "Really? You could have come by any time since you moved here two months ago", he answered. "As if my busy cousin has a lot of time for me", I retreated. He shrugged his shoulders apologetically. "All good", I laughed, "I guess your life is pretty full being a trainee." He nodded and sighed.

"Anyways, thanks for helping me out", I smiled and looked around curiously. Then, I let myself fall on the couch in his room, expecting it to be soft and cuddly since it was covered with blankets. Or so I thought. Turns out somebody was underneath that blankets. As he shifted, I lost my balance. Almost falling on him, I caught myself in time. However, I now was face to face with a complete stranger and we both stared at each other with wide eyes. "Seungbooooooo", I broke the silence first, "Why is there someone under the blanket on your couch?" "Better question: Who is she and why is there a girl in our dorm?", the other one asked. Seungbo sighed. "My cousin can invite whoever he wants and he decided to let me crash here tonight", I stated, "And who are you now?" I poked his cheek curiously which made him decide that I had been sitting on his belly long enough and pushed me off the couch. I squeaked and the next second I found myself sitting on the floor. Spinning around, I threateningly pointed a finger at him and grumbled: "That was not nice." He laughed. Huffing, I turned back to my cousin. "Waiting for an explanation", I said grumpily. "Me too", the guy behind me said and stared at Seungbo as well. "This will be stressful", the latter one sighed. Before I could protest however, he added: "Katy, that is Dongsik; Dongsik that is Katy. My cousin – my... You can keep a secret, right Katy? My soon-to-be-member." My jaw dropped and I spun around to look at a still grinning Dongsik. Then I jolted up, looked back at Seungbo, blurting out the question: "You will debut?" A big grin spread on my cousin's face as he nods. I squealed and hugged him so enthusiastically that we both almost fell backwards.