We Meet Again

Chapter 1: Unexpected

Kai blinks in surprise. "What?" was the first thing that came to his mind when his eyes landed on that familiar face, sleeping soundly on the sofa. The man's pale skin, the scar on his right cheek, was something Kai could never forget.

"Mon?"

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4:57 AM
It was Saturday, October 26th. The day that Kai moves into his apartment.

His older sister had already put some of his stuff inside the apartment the day before, and he's thankful for that because he didn't have much to carry now. He was occupied with unpacking, and didn't notice the person sleeping on the sofa until he heard snores. "Gosh," He thought. "Seems like this roommate of mine will be annoying."

(The roommate's face was covered with a pillow. Kai hasn't noticed yet.)

Around 5:30 AM, he had already finished unpacking half of his things, and decided to rest for a bit. Kai went to the kitchen, and rummaged through the kitchen cabinets to see if there were any packs of coffee. "Dear roommate, I hope you don't mind if I take one of these." He whispered to no one as before chuckling as he made his coffee.

7:46 AM...

Kai finally finished unpacking and has arranged his belongings properly. He readied his notebooks and stationary pens, before a thought crossed his mind. "I should check on my roommate and say hi."

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"Mon?" Kai blurted out unconsciously, still staring at the sleeping boy on the couch. He couldn't be mistaken, he recognized that scar, it was always familiar to him. His mind was on a spiral, and his heart was thumping loudly. "This isn't real." He thought. But it was real. He didn't even notice that his hand was touching, mapping the boy's face until he heard a grunt from the person.

"Who's there?" The boy murmured as he stirred awake, opening his eyes slightly but Kai swiftly covered his eyes.

"Your new roommate." Kai whispered.

"He won't recognize my voice, right?" Kai thought to himself. His brows furrowed as he stared at the boy's face, trying to read his expression.

The first thing he noticed was how red Mon's cheeks turned. A common way he reacts to situations. Then Kai's expression darkened. What if Mon recognized him and is acting all flustered to get him back-? No. Mon has bad memory.

"E-Eh!? Sorry. I guess I fell asleep here on the couch last night. My name is Damon! How about y- Eh... Sir?" Damon spoke, delicate hands trying to pull Kai's hand which was covering his sight. But Kai kept his hand over his eyes firmly, seemingly lost in thoughts.

"Ah," Kai spoke, trying to keep his tone casual. Damon introduced himself, so Kai thought he didn't recognize him. He was relieved. "I'm Kai." He said and removed his hand over Damon's eyes.

At the mention of the name "Kai," he earned a sheepish blink from Damon.
Kai got nervous and turned away.

There was a moment of silence between them. Damon casually blinking sheepishly every 3 seconds, and Kai averting his gaze elsewhere but Damon's piercing gaze.

"Kai Fritz?" Damon spoke, breaking the uneasy silence as he finally realized and recognized the man before him.

Kai's brows furrowed, and slowly nod. He felt somewhat annoyed of their casual interaction. "Yeah... It's been a while, I guess?"

Damon nodded as well, in a sheepish manner which sort of irritates Kai.

"So you're the new roommate?" Damon spoke, he felt awkward and nervous at the same time. Kai tried his best not to roll his eyes, probably because the first thing he said to Damon was "your new roommate" but nodded in response anyway.

"Yes."

"Sorry. I'll try not to bother you much." Damon apologized as he had a feeling he was irritating Kai. He then stood up, and walked off to his room awkwardly.

Kai lips part in surprise at how fast it all happened. He shook his head and stood up, his eyes on Damon's door. "Still awkward."

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The next day, Damon woke up to the sound of clinking in the kitchen. He grabbed his phone on the nightstand to check the time.

4:37 AM, October 27

"He's up already? It's still early..." Damon thought. He yawned and stretched his limbs, before getting out of bed.

"Did I wake you up?" Kai asked, raising an eyebrow at the groggy Damon. Damon was taken aback by Kai's morning voice, and his eyes flew open. "Deep." He thought.

"Yeah, you did. No biggie though." Damon said with a yawn, and walked over to sit on one chair.

Kai helplessly stared at Damon, drinking at the sight as he paused in gathering the ingredients. He thought that a lot of things have changed about Damon. His now long hair, slim body, pale skin... Kai memorized every detail in a short amount of time.

Damon noticed this and stared back at Kai, thrusting his lower lip slightly as he did.

After a few minutes, Kai finally snapped out of his daze and his breath hitched in realization. His ears reddened slightly in embarrassment of being caught.

Damon paid no mind at all. He's too casual about it. But he swore that he heard the other man curse under his breath.

"Itzo," Damon started.

Kai froze, his eyes widening. Itzo was the nickname Damon gave him back then. He didn't expect the other man to address him like that.

"What are you going to cook?" Damon asked as he tilted his head. With a puppy-ish expression on his face.

"Katsudon."

"You're still into Japanese dishes, I see." Damon whispered softly to himself, and his thoughts drifted to their past.

Kai caught his whisper and he smiled, facing away from Damon.

"You still remember, sweet." Kai thought.