Are You Insane, Like Me?

Chapter 1 - What Am I Doing Here

Reality wasn't meeting expectations. He'd been excited to leave home and escape, not so much his family but his past. Occasionally, it felt like it was all he could think of, and it was suffocating. Plus, with the move, he expected to finally be near Ji-eun and move towards a future. Bring stability to their relationship. When his friend from college, Jae-Ho, called and offered him a job, he thought it was the perfect opportunity to gain what he wanted. Goals in place, he'd moved from the countryside to Seoul. Of course, He'd much rather be writing, but it wasn't paying the bills yet. Not that this job did much of that either, he was being paid very little, and it limited where he could live. While searching for a place to live, he'd stumbled upon Eden, a cheap hostel. It was outdated and the rooms were small, all the residents shared a kitchen and bathroom. He wasn't thrilled about the quality of the place or the other abnormal residents, but it's the only place in his meager budget. So he'd agreed, to all of it, and now he was paying for it.

Everything had gone to shit, the minute he got off the bus. He'd broken his laptop that was needed to write his books, gotten trapped in flashbacks while breaking up a fight, everybody living at Eden was fucking weird, shitty co-workers, obnoxious boss and he was barely seeing his girlfriend. The last being the kicker. He had come here because he wanted a future. But not only was he not seeing her, but he felt as though she didn't listen anymore. That she had been brushing him off since he'd shown up. He could have taken a shitty job back home, and lived in comfort, instead of this. There was no point in being here if they weren't trying for the same thing. Especially considering that he fucking hated it here. Specifically, Eden and the people who occupied it. Two people had just disappeared, and no one seemed surprised or concerned. He was concerned, though, concerned about whether they had left voluntarily or not.

The directions of his thoughts had him thinking of the man who stayed in the room next to him, Moon-jo. He'd originally thought he'd found a friend here, granted a strange friend, but a friend nonetheless. He'd gone upstairs to call Ji-eun, as the walls were thin in the rooms, and he really didn't want his private conversation with his girlfriend being overheard. Especially considering how perverted some of his co-residents were. When he'd told Ji-eun all this, she'd just told him, "You're being oversensitive." 

As he was finishing the frustrating call, he'd turned to find that someone was there. It had been Moon-jo with his creepy smile, but he'd been charming and offered him a beer. Initially, he'd been rude, but Moon-jo had seemed unperturbed and easily drew him into a conversation about his book. Being able to discuss his work in-depth had been the highlight of his entire move so far, but there was something about Moon-jo that made every hair on the back of his neck stand up. 

He was incredibly handsome. When he'd first seen him, he'd thought that he was encountering a model. Tall with iridescent skin, and these large eyes and lips that were so expressive they were captivating. His features could easily be considered pretty, but he had a physic that was anything but feminine. He was too intimidating for that, his body language screamed aggression. In his presence, Jong-woo would find himself immediately backing up, which was a feeling he didn't like. He didn't like when someone forced him to put his guard up. He also couldn't place why he felt so aggressive himself when all Moon-Jo was doing was smiling at him and being friendly. His smile, though... While attractive, it was creepy, too big, and unnatural looking. It had made Jong-woo break out in goosebumps and shiver. Moon-Jo said weird shit too. Jong-woo didn't know what to make of him, there was something there, but he couldn't necessarily put his finger on it.