Unique Friend

~7~

~7~

The next few days the two new roommates settle into a somewhat familiar routine; Taehyung insists on walking Karina to class every morning, and then he spends the day wandering the city, parks, cafes -whatever strikes his fancy. Some days he has a camera with him, others a notepad, and some days nothing at all work related that Karina can tell. Knowing the creative process can be stressful for some artists, she doesn't question him too much on his progress, but in the back of her mind she worries he will not be ready for the show at Black Swan; he seems so carefree she sometimes worries he's not working at all. Still, she doesn't feel it's her place to pry, so she doesn't bring it up.

Once Karina finishes her semester, she has a lot more free time, and usually picks up a second job for the summer. This year, however, with all the stress of finding a new roommate, it had completely slipped her mind. Namjoon has given her a few more shifts at the cafe, but he has other staff too, so can only offer her a few additional hours. She is at the kitchen island on her first day of having no school, scrolling job sites, stressing, when Taehyung comes strolling out, dressed and ready for the day.

"Karina?", he asks, clearly puzzled to find her still in pjs. "Are you unwell?"

"Mmm?" she replies, engrossed in her scrolling, it takes a moment for her to look at him. "Oh! Oh, Taehyung, I am sorry! I thought I told you....I am all finished with school for the summer."

Taehyung looks like he doesn't quite know how to process this for a moment; in fact, he looks rather lost. "Oh....ok. Well, what are you doing now?"

Karina has the impression he is disappointed, but doesn't understand why he would be, unless he just likes to stick to routine. "Oh. Well, I am job hunting, actually," she explains as he sits at the island beside her.

"Job hunting? But I thought you worked for Namjoon-hyung?"

"I do. But, now that school is done, I have more time to work, so I usually pick up a second job," she explains with a shrug. Taehyung nods absently, giving her the impression he doesn't fully understand, but she doesn't feel awake enough to try to explain. She continues sipping her coffee and scrolling as he sits quietly beside her, lost in his thoughts. After a few minutes the quiet is disrupted when his stomach announces the fact that he hasn't had breakfast yet. He gives an embarrassed little giggle.

"I'm hungry," he states, grabbing her sleeve and pulling her gently. "Come to breakfast with me, Roomie. Celebrate no more school!"

The last thing Karina wants to do is fuss over what to wear in public, and, well, be in public. But there Taehyung goes again with his irresistible grin and big, pleading eyes, melting her resolve. She swears the man knows the power that look holds and uses it to his advantage. She sighs in defeat.

"Ok, but nowhere fancy, I'm lazy today and not in the mood to get pretty."

Taehyung laughs at this, "Karina you are always pretty," as he pulls her to her feet and ushers her toward her room to get ready. "Hurry. I'm hungry."

She can't help but laugh and roll her eyes at this, giving him a playful shove. "Ok, ok bossy. I won't be long."

True to her word, Karina emerges just fifteen minutes later in a cute but simple outfit of light wash jeans, fitted white tee, and her trademark Converse. She did take a couple of minutes to tidy up her hair and even swiped on a little mascara (when she finally dug it out from the back of her toiletries basket), and lipgloss. Seeing her, Taehyung gives an appreciative smile. "See. Perfect," then he frowns, "well, almost perfect." and, holding up one finger telling her to wait a moment, he turns and heads to his own room. He returns a moment later holding out a garment in her direction.

"Here, this will complete the look, and also protect you from the sun," he says as he hands her a Gucci cotton button-down top, white with navy blue pinstripes.

"Oh, thank you Taehyung, but I was just going to wear my college hoodie," she replies with a smile, but he's looking at her with those big pleading eyes again and she knows before he even speaks that she's going to cave.

"Please," is all he says, holding up the shirt. Karina simply sighs in defeat once again as she slips her arms into the too-big sleeves.

"Taehyung, this thing is huge on m-hey!" She is caught by surprise as Taehyung steps closer and starts adjusting the shirt for her. When he's finished, he steps back and gives a little nod in satisfaction. Karina looks down at herself and sees he has neatly rolled up the sleeves to just the right length, and has tied the front of the shirt closed in such a way that it falls perfectly and doesn't look all bunched up, despite the excess fabric on her tiny frame.

She has to admit, the guy's got style.

"Wow, this does look great! Thanks!" she says with a big smile, feeling pretty for the first time in -well, forever; she doesn't give much thought to her appearance on the daily. All these compliments from Taehyung must be going to my head, she thinks to herself.

Taehyung tells her he has a certain spot in mind for breakfast, and not having a preference, she just nods and follows his lead as they head out down the street from the apartment building. They walk a few blocks in companionable silence, enjoying the fresh morning air and sunshine.

Karina, ever practical, gets lost in thoughts of her financial situation, job prospects, and course selection for next semester. She hadn't realized she was frowning until Taehyung mentioned it.

"You frown a lot," he randomly blurts. He says it in such an abrupt, blunt manner, she can't help but laugh, erasing said frown.

"I guess I do, don't I? I was just thinking..." she trails off with a shrug.

Just then, they come to the place Taehyung was looking for, and he pulls open the door, gesturing for her to step inside. He leads her over to the counter to place their orders before heading to a small table in the corner by the front window, where he pulls out a chair for her. He doesn't do it as a grand gesture, more like just a natural thing he does for every friend. She finds it a touching gesture.

"So you are looking for another job?," Taehyung asks. When she nods, he continues, "You will work two jobs? All summer?"

She shrugs, "Yeah, I kind of have to. I get loans to cover my tuition cost, and they can help with some living expenses too, but I figure the less I have to borrow now, the less I have to pay back later, so I usually work two, sometimes even three, jobs in a summer and save up while I can," she explains matter-of-factly.

"Oh," is all he says as a server approaches with their orders and they eat in silence.

With her schedule between classes and work being so irregular, she and Taehyung had never really had meals together. She is amazed at the size of his breakfast order, and how quickly he manages to pack it all away. She wonders how he stays so slim.

They finish their meal and leave the restaurant. Karina is about to turn in the direction of their apartment when Taehyung's gentle touch on her wrist stops her. "I usually go to the park now," he begins, suddenly shy. "Come with me?"