IQ148 // namjoon ✔️

__AUGUST__

August ; 2016

JungMi opens her eyes; the first thing she sees is the ceiling.

When she fell asleep, it was still July 31st.

It's August 1st when she wakes up.

It's a new day; a new day to look forward to.

When she shifts onto her side, JungMi realizes just how comfortable the couch really is.

She begrudgingly throws the blanket off her body and gets off the couch to start her day. Since she's unemployed now, she has a lot of time on her hands. She might even have time to visit the bookstore today...

JungMi scratches her back and yawns as she stumbles towards the kitchen, fatigue still masking her face. Her hair is messy and sticking up in some places from rolling around in her sleep. She pulls down her shirt which riled up get stomach in her sleep.

When she reaches the kitchen, she rubs her eyes before glancing at the digital clock on their microwave: 8:16 AM.

She starts to go through the motions of her morning routine, but she's in no rush this time. Now, she can savor every second of her morning to herself.

To her amazement, there is already a plate lavishly piled with rice, eggs, bacon, and pancakes left for grabbing in the middle of the kitchen island. Her stomach growls at the sight of such a feast fit for a queen's breakfast.
Although she's unsure of who provided breakfast for her this morning, she gratefully takes it and reheats it in the microwave.

She fills a metal kettle with a generous amount of water before leaving it on the stove to boil. As she waits for the water for her morning cup of green tea to boil and for her breakfast to reheat, JungMi plays the voicemails on her brother's landline phone to catch up for the day ahead.

She lets the answering machine recite the voicemails on speaker as she roams around the kitchen trying to prepare the table for breakfast:

You have 3 unheard messages.

1st unheard message. Beeeeep.

"JungWoo-ah! It's your mother. I just called to check up on you. It's been a while since you've called your dad and I. Please call more often!"

JungMi recognizes the caller's voice right away: it's the voice of the woman who raised her and the one who criticized JungMi a majority of her life.

It's her mother calling to check up on her older brother, JungWoo.

JungMi sets down a fork at the dining table and sets aside her favorite ceramic mug for her free tea. She stalks over to the answering machine, about to skip the voicemail mid message, but her mother continues:

"...And please let us know how your sister is doing. I'm worried about her... Please make sure JungMi-ah eats a lot! Don't just let her eat leftovers. Make sure she eats a proper meal with rice."

JungMi's finger hovers over the skip button as she hears the rest of her mother's voicemail...

...She stares at the phone, unsure if what she heard is real. She still can't seem to process it...

... The microwave starts to beep, signaling that the food it hot and ready. The ringing snaps JungMi out of her trance.

She opens the microwave and cautiously grabs her breakfast plate: a proper meal with rice.
She brings her food to the dining table and sets down the plate on the placemat. JungMi sits down, says a quick prayer, and picks up her fork as the next voicemail starts to play:

2nd unheard message. Beeeeep.

"Hey, JungMi! It's JungWoo! I'm calling on my way to work. I just wanted to let you know I had to leave early. I know you're probably still sleeping right now since you came back so late last night, so you'll probably hear this when you wake up. I was able to make you breakfast before I left. It's on the table already. You just have to reheat it."

...The kettle starts to whistle and whine as steam starts to shoot out of its spout. The noises startle her and make her drop her fork in surprise. Her chair scratches against the tile floor as she stands from the dining table.

She drops her empty plate and dirty fork in the sink on her way to the stove.

She lifts the kettle off of the stove and gracefully tilts it to pour the hot water into her favorite mug...

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to talk to you last night... a patient was in urgent care. I know I haven't been the best older brother, so I'm sorry for failing you... If you're still up for it, we can talk when I get home."

JungMi opens the cabinet next to her head. She reaches in and grabs the box of green tea bags. With her other hand, she reaches further in and blindly pats around for the bottle of honey.

Once she has hold of the honey bottle, she squeezes some into her cup and mixes with a spoon.

She selects one of the green tea bags and dips it in the water.

Once the color and sweetness is to her satisfaction, she lightly blows the steam off the surface before sipping her tea lightly. She savors every sip as the answering machine plays the last voicemail:

3rd unheard message. Beeeeep.

"Hello, this is Yoon BoYoung from Munhakdongne Publishing Corp. We are looking for Lee JungMi to inquire about her manuscript titled IQ148. We are currently considering it for publication and would like to start the process as soon as possible. If this is her residence, please have her return our call to set up a meeting."

JungMi spits out her tea, spraying it in the air and all over her brother's kitchen. She's confident that some of it even went up her nose.

She coughs violently and wipes drool at the corner of her lips with the back of her hand as she runs around the kitchen looking for a napkin.

An actual publisher...

Looking for her...

An actual book publisher left a voicemail while she was out walking on Mapo Bridge...

If she had jumped last night, she would have missed their voicemail.

In a way, NamJoon saved her again.