I was floating.

No wait – did a sardine just cross me? – I am in water. The sea, I’m guessing. There were corals below me and fish everywhere. I stared at them and they eerily stared back with their lid-less eyes. Creeeeeeeeepy.

Few poked curiously at my feet than swam away, scared and others basically ignored my existence. I tried moving about but couldn’t get far. I was flapping my arms around trying to head in one direction but then I blink my eyes and I was back in the same position once more. It was all so confusing and I simply gave up.

A school of mackerel was heading my way.

Again, I tried flapping – I do not want to smell like fish, thank you – but my efforts were for nought. I ended up upside down, mouthing unheard curses at some more-than-baffled plankton.

A mackerel was heading straight at me. I held both my arms up as a shield – and it went straight through me. It’s lights. They’re all lights. Everything around me was twinkling and fairy tale .

As if finally noticing my existence, the mackerel parted around me.

And out emerged Kwangmin.

I stared. I realized he was sleeping, small bubbles drifting out of his mouth as he snored.

The mackerel were pushing at him towards me, and with each push, they would burst in sparks of light. The bits of sparks would stick to Kwangmin’s hair.

As Kwangmin got nearer, I realized that his lips were bulging. As he got even nearer, I realized that his lips were actually growing. His face remained the same – the perfect jawline and whatnot – but his lips were literally outgrowing his face.

The oversized lips parted and out popped a dog. My favourite kind of dog; the welsh corgi. It, too, was sleeping, and its lips also started to grow. A Kwangmin lookalike came out of the dog’s lips, but this one had blonde hair. Seriously, what is this lip-ception am I experiencing?

This Kwangmin’s started growing, too and I expected for some other thing or another to come out. But the mackerel were getting restless. Lots of them were ramming through me and some burst in a flurry of lights when we made contact.

My vision started getting blurry and dark – the lights were fading. Everything around me kept flickering. The mackerel were relentless. I started to get scared. Kwangmin and his blonde lookalike and the doggie were gone.

As each light went out, I got more panicky. My ears were ringing. It was getting hard to breathe. The water became so suffocating, so suffocating. I felt alone and then the last light died.

I woke with a start, chest pounding and my forehead layered with sweat. My alarm clock was ringing madly. I threw the damned thing to a wall, not caring if I broke it.

I checked the time from my phone, since my clock is probably lying in pieces at the foot of my bed. I had woken up a whole two hours earlier before school. I contemplated getting back to sleep but then I thought of the dream I had. I don’t think I’d get any more sleep after all that weird crap I dreamt anyways. I may as well just shower and get ready for school. I noticed that I had a few unread text messages, mostly ones from yesterday, and sent back some replies.

Yawning, I got out of bed and made my bed. My blankets were all bunched up into one huge pile and my pillows and plushies and whatnot scattered across it. Satisfied with my work, I then trudged to the bathroom.

I passed the mirror and had to stop. I looked like . I look like the gave birth and died – and I absolutely reek.

Oh yeah. I forgot. I was at Amber’s yesterday. I remember that we went on for 3 hours straight dancing and singing along with the songs. I also remember that I didn’t shower. I think I’m even wearing the same clothes.

 I stripped out of my sticky clothes and took a long overdue shower. I was under the water my thoughts swirling from deep questions – why? Why are we here? Why did God make us? We only crap things up – to more worrying ones – oh God; my bum looks fat and a new pimple and damn my knees look weeeeeeeeird – for a good half an hour.

I then proceeded to get dried and clothed, taking my time. After that, I went to my kitchen and grabbed a bowl and spoon.

I made oatmeal and decided to turn on the telly to pass the time.

An energy drink commercial was on. For half of a second there I had the urge to exercise then it went away. I skimmed through some movies that were on but found nothing that interested me.

I found myself stopping at the cooking channel, some dude with an elaborate beard explaining how to cut up frogs for cooking. The whole time my face was twisted in disgust. Note to self: never trust men with suspicious facial hair.

But the mention of frogs did bring me back to one fond strange morning I had – the morning when Kwangmin moved in.

It was – as it is already established – morning. Pestering ringing flooded my ears. My alarm clock, like always, was thrown away haphazardly from its place. This time, it ended up flying out the window. A quarter of the money I use up is to buy alarm clocks.

I groggily got up, my hair sticking up in odd places and dry saliva running across my cheeks. After coming to my senses, I made up my bed and got into the bathroom.

I washed my face and smoothed out my hair.

Just as I was about to start brushing my teeth, I heard someone thumping against my door. I dismissed it and continued to brush. The thumping continued. I grumbled, thinking who the hell would come at this ungodly hour.

“Wait a second!” I yelled out through a mouthful of minty foam. I hastily finished brushing my teeth and wiped my wet hands on the front of my baggy T-shirt. More thumping. “I said I’m coming.”

I opened my front door and got attacked. I screamed bloody murder and found myself staring down at something small, green, and ugly. It was a frog. I had shat myself for a frog. “What the ,” I uttered as I stared at it hopping away.

I gaped. The hallway was hopping with frogs – excuse the pun.

I rubbed my eyes, thinking I was hallucinating. Nope – I am still sane, the frogs were still there. I continued gaping. Around half a dozen jumping amphibians littered here and there.

There was this one especially annoying frog that kept hopping at my ankles, loudly croaking at me as if it wanted to communicate. Red spots covered its little green behind. I tried shooing it away. “Go, go, shoo, go back to your brothers – sisters – whatever, shoo,” I told it feebly, adding a small ribbit at the end.

“Ribbit.”

My frog whispering skills fail me.

“Look, froggy, I just woke up and I am not in the mood to –”

“Rrrrrrrrrrrribit.”

“Don’t interrupt people when they’re speaking!”

I sounded absolutely ridiculous scolding a frog for having no manners. If it was anyone else, they’d have thought I was bonkers and stealthily walk past without making eye contact, he didn’t.

“Henry VII, be polite around strangers,” a voice chided.

Startled, and a bit embarrassed, I turned around. A brunette had approached me and the frog. He wore a white shirt and neon orange skinnies. A muddy yellow frog was in his hands and another frog – a bright pink one – was perched on top of his head. Behind him, I noticed that the apartment beside me was open and stacks upon stacks of boxes were piled by the open door.

“You don’t want to scare people off now,” he continued, grabbing the spotted frog and putting him on eye-level.

I watched, silent, as he proceeded to place the frogs into a box. The pink one remained on his head.

He spoke first. “I’m sorry for Henry VII’s behaviour; he can be a bit shameless at times,” he said.

“Henry VII? Is that the frog’s name?”

The brunette grinned. “He’s a royal born in England.”

“You must be proud.”

“Yeah, you should hear him and his British accent. Women fall at his feet left and right.”

I laughed.

He held out his hand. “I’m Kwangmin, your next-door neighbour as of 9:43 a.m. today. I am sixteen, I like cheese, and after the Final Destination movie I saw last night; shoelaces are the death of you.”

“Haerin, also sixteen, I’m lactose intolerant, you’re a pansy – Final Destination is something I watch for bedtime – and you should really soak your hands in disinfectant.”

A/N: This is like a little "side story." Sorta, I have no idea.