You Make Me | Lee Eunhyuk

02, calm before the storm

Jiwon awoke as Eunhyuk raised his head. The girl yawned and stood next to Eunhyuk, ready to exit the bus. She felt a strange sensation in the pit of her stomach as she stepped out onto the sidewalk. Jiwon wasn't superstitious, but she trusted her instinct, and her instinct was telling her that something wasn't right.

Eunhyuk came to a halt and turned to face his friend as the two made the short journey from the bus stop to the Green Home apartments' entrance. He closed his umbrella as the rain had slowed. 

"I have to go to work now. I'll see you later," he said, but Jiwon could not shake the feeling that something was amiss, so she gently grabbed his arm.

She considered telling him how she felt and attempting to figure out what was wrong with his help, but she was sure that he would nag and baby her for not taking care of herself. She scrambled to come up with an excuse.

"Okay, did you pack any food for yourself?" she inquired, knowing he either didn't or was planning to eat ramen again.

"I have some instant ramen."

Jiwon sighed and checked her watch. There were still forty-five minutes till his shift began, plenty of time to pack something other than instant noodles.

"Eunhyuk, you know you get stomachaches if you eat instant noodles," she said sternly. "Come up quickly, and I'll pack you some proper food."

He began, "Hey, it's not like th—"

The girl ignored his response and dragged him into the building, past the relatively empty lobby, to the elevator, which she discovered was out of service.

With her hands on her hips, she stated, "Well, I guess we'll have to take the stairs."

The two proceeded to the stairwell to reach Jiwon's apartment on the fifteenth floor.

As they ascended, she noticed an uncle she had seen roaming in the building before. He was extremely muscular and well-groomed, indicating that he took diligent care of himself. As he cascaded down the steps, however, his customary cheerful disposition was replaced with a blank stare. There was also some evident distress in his blank look.

As they crossed paths, the girl politely inquired, "Hello, sir, how are you today?"

He continued down the stairwell into the corridor without responding.

Jiwon shifted her weight forward again, puzzled.

"That was weird," she said, ultimately dismissing his behavior.

Jiwon turned hastily to move towards her apartment after climbing the stairs, but Eunhyuk grabbed her wrist while leaning over.

As he gathered his breath, he murmured, "One second please."

"Of course, sorry," Jiwon answered, apologetically smiling.

The girl looked around the fifteenth floor in the few moments Eunhyuk was gathering his breath, and the corridor was dark and dreary, adding to her paranoia. This was a fairly run-down apartment complex, so the lighting in the corridors was never excellent, but it seemed borderline apocalyptic now. There was also an eerie silence, broken only by the sudden loud sound of an electric bass nearby, likely from the same apartment as usual down the hall.

When the two arrived at Jiwon's apartment, 1506, they were greeted by her brother. He was working on paperwork in the living room while listening to Christian music through the speaker. Jiwon frowned slightly; Christian music reminded her of her former dysfunctional household. However, she refused to express her displeasure to her brother because she was grateful he had allowed her to live with him. Eunhyuk gave Jiwon a glance before gently squeezing her shoulder; he was aware of her situation, and the two had discussed it extensively.

"I'm home, Jaeheon," Jiwon said as she made her way to the kitchen, neglecting to set her duffle bag down first. Eunhyuk followed the girl in silence.

"Welcome back, Wonnie. How did your day go?" he inquired, his gaze still fixed on his paperwork.

"It was the same as usual," she said, "the weather outside is dreadful though." She replied, now packing some food.

"Oh, absolutely, it's quite dark," said Jaeheon. "You should have called me to pick you up," he continued, glancing out the window. "It's not safe to be walking outdoors alone right now."

"You're right, but Eunhyuk walked me back today, so everything worked out," she said, a small chuckle in her voice.

The girl's older brother eventually looked towards the kitchen to see his sister in the kitchen with her best friend. He approached them and ruffled Jiwon's hair before patting Eunhyuk on the shoulder.

"Thanks for walking her back Eunhyuk," Jaeheon said to which Eunhyuk nodded. 

Jiwon then handed Eunhyuk his packed container of food and put the extras away in the fridge.

"All right, I'll go now. Thanks for the food, Jiwon," Eunhyuk said, gently smiling at his best friend and her brother.

"No problem, have a nice shift and stay safe, okay?" Jiwon said.

"I will," he responded as he walked towards the door, put on his shoes, and walked out.

As soon as Eunhyuk left, Jiwon's brother called out to her. She was locking the door and beginning to walk to her room to put her stuff away and change.

"Excuse me, Jiwon, but could you go downstairs and get the mail?" Jaeheon inquired.

"Right now?" the young girl deadpanned at her brother. "I just got back. And the elevator's broken."

"Please? He remarked, "I need some important documents."

"Fine," she responded as she exited the apartment.

Jiwon headed downstairs quickly to avoid potential interactions with others; she was simply too exhausted today. She expected to finish her task as fast as possible, so she could go home and play video games. However, she was unprepared for the crisis that would unfold in the building and around the world.