The knocking began at about 3am. 

Now, silence had never been something foreign to Heechul, seeing as he lived in a rather secluded part of the country and rarely had any visitors save the weekly arrival of the mailman. Today was not a Friday, however, and so when he’d heard noises at his door at an ungoldly hour before the sun had even gone up, his first reaction had been to ignore it and head back to sleep. Whoever it was would just have to wait, because Kim Heechul would never be one to express consideration of any sorts for another human being. 

Especially those who woke him up early.

Pulling the white sheets tighter around his skinny frame, the feminine man shut his eyes as he dismissed the noise with a quick “shut up”. Nonchalance soon morphed into annoyance as the incessant noise continued ringing in his ears, and no matter how hard the man tried to pretend otherwise, it was clear that all chances of sleep had left him. Grumbling under his breath, he kicked the blankets off of his body before swinging his legs over the edge of the bed and making his way to the front door.

“What do you want?” He growled as he pulled open the door, and all previous thoughts of commiting arson suddenly left him as he was met with a wimpering boy collapsed upon the steps. Glancing around at the surroundings, the man allowed his eyes to wander back to the crying brunette, and there was only a slight moment of hesitation before he pulled the boy into his house, slamming the door shut. The boy was mumbling something now, though Heechul failed to comprehend the seemingly random string of words that escaped the quivering lips. Deciding that the boy was in no state to provide him answers to the questions running through his head anytime soon, Heechul opted instead to throw him in the shower, along with a towel and some clean clothes. “Come out when you’re done.” Was all he said before he left the boy alone. “And don’t waste my water.”

For about 20 minutes, Heechul had wondered if the boy had fallen asleep or passed out in the washroom, though he sincerely hoped not for he wasn’t about to play doctor to some random stranger who’d suddenly showed up at his doorstep. Granted, the boy had seemed rather pitiful —that was probably why he’d even been allowed entrance in the first place— but still. Thankfully, the sound of running water soon put the man at ease, and he switched on the television, surfing through the channels as he searched for something worth watching.

About half an hour later, the brunette stumbled down the stairwell, now freshly cleaned with a bundle of cloth in his arms. Coughing awkwardly, he attempted to get the attention of the man who’d somehow fallen asleep in a seemingly uncomfortable position sprawled across the couch. When he was greeted with a series of quiet snores, the brunette began to move closer, prodding at the man’s shoulders. “Uhm… Please, well, please wake up?”

Several attempts and three groans later, the boy sighed in defeat and slumped onto the ground, sitting cross legged with the pile of laundry in his lap. Pulling at a piece of his hair, he silently stared at the grey walls and wooden floors, and quickly came to the conclusion that the owner most definitely did not know how to clean. It w