Captive (JiKyu)

22. 이웃

(^Jihoon's eyes!)

Junkyu fell on his back, drained out of his system. He woke up early morning, finished uni and tutored Junghwan, then headed towards the cafe and worked until 11 pm. In the meantime he might have had one proper meal? He couldn't really remember. It would have been okay if he could forget everything, have a fresh shower and go to sleep but he had studies to catch up to. Just thinking about it tired him even more.

"Ahhh!" He groaned, hiding his face in the pillow. He was hungry, staying at Jihoon's made his body accustomed to luxury. It would be difficult to go back to how he was.

There was one good thing though, that is his flatmate, Jeongwoo. Just like Haruto, he was so full of energy and cuteness. He looked after the elder even though they barely see each other throughout the day. Even that night, as Junkyu screamed his frustration out in the pillow, the younger knocked on his door, asking if he'd like to eat food his mum had sent.

"Uh... I think I'll pass." Junkyu tried not to mind the way his stomach growled, thinking that he'd finish up Jeongwoo's precious home cooked food, but like an angel, the latter confirmed that his mother specifically added more for Junkyu.

"Really?" The elder sat up, gratitude flowing out through his gaze.

"Mm!" Nodded the younger, "She likes you! Tells me I should be as active as you in life." Junkyu chuckled, following him out of the room. They sat down and had dinner together. Junkyu felt like crying, the food tasted so delicious.

"Oh, hyung?" Called the younger. "You didn't tell me your friend's gonna live in this building?"

"Hm?" Junkyu who had a mouthful of food, asked, "Who?"

"Oh shit! I forgot to ask his name." Jeongwoo said, "But he said he knows you cause you're uni mates."

"Oh?" The elder gulped down his food, "I didn't know."

"Figures. If you had known you'd have moved in with him, right?"

Junkyu shrugged, "Living with you is fun too. So, I don't know."

Jeongwoo grinned. They finished dinner and cleaned the dishes. For the time being, the older guy had to rely on his flatmate's utensils. He promised to gather everything eventually. Once he was done, it was almost midnight. He had to study before anything but he was also curious. Which friend? Which uni mate? In the back of his mind, Junkyu had a tiny bit of hope, although he didn't know what he'd do if that guy's indeed Jihoon. He asked from Jeongwoo about the unit and then stepped out to check for himself.

He could see empty cartons outside the door to that very flat. With every step, he felt more and more anxious. The possibility of the guy being Jihoon was low, really low, but not impossible. Would he be okay if that person turned out to be the one who humiliated the hell out of him once?

Junkyu rang the bell, it didn't make a sound, cause, well whoever that person was, they had just moved in. Therefore, he knocked, waiting eagerly. He heard some footsteps and a muffled voice, and then the door opened and-

He came face to face with a sweaty, reddish faced Jihoon.

"I'm sorry, I'm l..ate?" Jihoon's words died in the air as the two stared at each other. Junkyu's eyes widened from surprise at first, but then they narrowed in a frown, got filled with anger and frustration. He didn't stand there any longer, spinning on his heels, trying to rush away from that door. But Jihoon, he was agile. He held his friend's hand in a tight grip, "Junkyu, wait!"

Obviously, the other tried to set himself free, but like always, he fell short of strength compared to Jihoon.

"Let go! What the fuck do you want!?" He struggled. But the elder took him inside. He had stuff unorganized on his bed, on the floor. There weren't that many things but it still looked messy cause he was midway unpacking. Jihoon turned to him, observing him with cautious eyes.