VR - Virtual Reality [STRAY KIDS FF] ✔️

10. Stars

The night is warm and perfect. I close my eyes and breathe in the scented air - freshly cut grass, vanilla cookies from the bakery down the street, and spring flowers from the gardens of the peaceful neighborhood.

I bring the mug closer to my face and inhale the sweet scent of hot chocolate before I take a sip of the drink.

My butt is starting to ache even though I'm sitting on a comfortable cushion. I open my eyes and look up, exhaling the breath I'm holding after I swallow the warm chocolate liquid.

The constellation of Cassiopeia is staring down at me. I count the five starts and smile to myself. Looking slightly to the right, I see her daughter - Andromeda - and the winged horse - Pegasus.

I dwell on the myths in my mind but my stories replaying my in head are interrupted by a loud crash and string of curses coming from a house on my right.

"Fuck!" The male yells and I watch as he almost stumbles on his way to exit his window and climb on the roof of the house.

The houses in the neighborhood are all designed similarly, all having access to the roof of the porch from the windows of the rooms on the second floor. And that roof, the one I'm currently sitting on, has been my favorite place in the house ever since I moved in.

I can't help but watch the clumsy guy next door, pressing my lips so as not to laugh when he stumbles yet again while crawling out on the roof like a frightened little animal.

In one hand, he's holding a thin box - which I figure is a pizza box - while using the other to secure his stance and navigate the ground. He tries to reach for something with his free hand but his knee falls flat against the soft tiles of the roof, eliciting a vibration that causes the shiny object to roll away from his reach and fall on the ground.

"Fuck!" He grits out and slams the pizza box on the roof, now coming out completely.

He's wearing large-sized clothes but his bright hair is very noticeable under the moonlight.

"Are you okay?" I ask loud enough, startling the man.

When his head snaps up at me, I raise my hand in a small wave, noticing the thick-rimmed glasses on his face.

"I'm fine..." the boy sighs, grabbing the pizza. "Coming out here with both hands full was a bad idea - my beer's gone now."

I twist my mouth, thinking of how to respond to his obvious annoyance.

"I have some soda if you want," I offer and he looks back at me, speechless. His silence makes the offer even more awkward. "I always have canned soda with pizza - it's the best combination."

Great. Now it'll look like I want to eat his pizza.

"Thanks," he finally replies after a long-stretched second. "But I'll just head back inside."

And he's gone.

Well, that was a failed attempt to get to know my new neighbor...

But a similar scenario repeats the next night.

I'm enjoying my hot cocoa after a long day when the wooden-frame window of the neighboring house slides open and a young man stumbles out.

"Shit..." he hisses and a pitied smile touches my lips.

I wait for him to sit so he doesn't stumble and fall, startled by my voice. "Hey, neighbor!" I raise my hand and he raises his head.

The distance between our houses is just enough for me to see his face and that lukewarm smile he put up out of curtsy.