I paused, fingers hovering over the keyboard as i held my breath. Silence. I could have sworn I heard something. Heard someone. A quick look at the clock told me it was 02:38, much to early for anyone to be awake, especially in this apartment complex. 

 

The old lady in the apartment below made sure it was quiet after 9 every night. When I had first moved in, I though living on my own would allow me the freedom I hadn't be able to have living in a shared dorm. Unfortunately, Mrs Kim didn't appreciate rap music and after being threatened with eviction, I had soon learned my lesson and kept quiet. 

 

I shook my head, blaming my lack of sleep for the voices I was hearing. I had been working on this damn song for the past month and I still wasn't any closer to finishing it. After what seemed like my millionth attempt to make the lyrics work well alongside the beat, I had finally decided to barricade myself in my room till I had finished it. 

 

That had been three days ago. The only time I had left my desk was to use the bathroom or grab something to eat and even then, I wasn't gone for more than five minutes at a time. Although, I had managed to make some progress with the song, I was starting to loose touch with reality; I had awoken not long ago with the distinct belief that I was a fried vegetable. It had taken me longer then I care to admit for me to finally figure out I was in fact a human and not a piece of fresh produce. 

 

Refocusing, I settled back into my work, fingers once again tapping an endless rhythm against the plastic keys. I had managed to write two whole sentences before I heard it again. By the sound of it, it was right outside my window. 

 

 

This time I knew I had really heard something. Someone was... singing? It was almost 3am and someone was singing? I strained to hear more, cursing my heartbeat for being so loud. I could make out a few words but the rest was just faint mumbling. 

 

The lyrics on the screen waited patiently, the curser slowly blinking, indicating where I had stopped abruptly halfway through a sentence. The first few words made no sense to me now; I had the beginning but I had long since forgotten the end. Maybe that's why I stood up. 

 

Maybe that's why I pushed back my chair and started to walk towards the window. Maybe it was because I was curious to see who decided to open up their own karaoke on my front lawn. Maybe it was because I had finally gone crazy and the vegetable part of me had taken over control of my body. 

 

Whatever it was, I found myself at the window a few seconds later, pushing open the stiff wooden frame. The cool breeze flooded in causing me to pull my hoodie tightly around myself before sticking my head out into the night. 

 

Although the sky was dark, the street lights did a great job of illuminating the ground bellow. This meant I could perfectly see source of all the noise. 

 

 

There he was; standing three floors below me was a guy. He was wearing all black, beanie covering his hair, arms wrapped around himself in an attempt to ward off the cold night air. He was almost directly under my window but it was the window next to mine he was staring at, head tilted back as he sang. 

 

I don't know how long he stood there singing but I didn't move. I couldn't move. His voice was raspy and every so often it would break and he'd wince at the sound. He clearly wasn't used to singing but there was something about him that wouldn't allow me to leave. Something hopeful. 

 

He finished the song, voice slowly trailing off but eyes never wondering from the window a few meters from mine. I turned to look at the window myself; Ri Chang Hee's window. 

 

I had been living here for a while now but I hadn't bothered making friends within the building, Chang Hee was no different. We exchanged greetings when we passed each other in the hall and he had borrowed a cup of sugar from me once but that was all our interactions amounted too. We simply lived next door to each other. 

 

I had never seen him have any friends round either. He seemed to keep mostly to himself. So I was surprised when he had told me earlier this week that he would be out of town for a while. I'm sure he wouldn't have, but he wanted me to be aware in case anything happened while he was gone. 

 

While he was gone. 

 

My eyes snapped back to the boy below. It had seemed strange for him to be singing earlier but now it  seemed even stranger after remembering Chang Hee wasn't even home. Didn't he know? That question was answered shortly after. 

 

"Ri Chang Hee... I know you said you w-weren't looking for a relationship right now but I needed to tell you how I f-felt..." He spoke loud enough for me to hear him clearly but he still managed to make it sound like he was whispering. 

 

"I really l-like you, more then you like me I'm sure, but I just need to know if I have any chance at all..." 

 

I shouldn't be listening to this. It was three in the morning and a man was confessing his feelings to a guy who wasn't even there. I definitely shouldn't be listening. 

 

But I couldn't stop. Couldn't stop listening to him stutter through his words as he opened up his soul. Couldn't stop looking at him as he shuffled awkwardly on his feet. Couldn't stop my heart from picking up its pace even though his words were not meant for me. 

 

"Chang Hee, can you hear me...?" 

 

My heart broke. He was confessing his love to an empty room. Waiting for a reply that would never come. The words fell from my mouth before I even had a chance to stop them. 

 

"He's not here..." He jumped at my voice, letting out a squeak of surprise and almost falling backwards. He looked around quickly, trying to find the owner of the voice. Our eyes met. 

 

"Ri Chang Hee isn't here. He's out of town. I don't know how long for." I tried to tell him as gently as possible, worried for the fragile boy I had never met before. He looked shocked at my words, embarrassed even, but he took them in with a nod. I expected him to ask more about it but it was something completely different he addressed me on. 

 

"H-how much did you hear?" I didn't need to say the words for him to know I had heard it all. He cleared his throat uncomfortably, hand rubbing against the back of his neck. Even from where i stood, i could see the pain shadowing his face. A silence fell between us and it seemed to stretch on for eternity. Neither of us knew what to say. 

 

He was the one to speak first but as soon as he said the words, I wished he would have remained silent. 

 

"I'm sorry I disturbed you. I'll go now..." I didn't want him to leave but I had no reason to tell him to stay, no right. He wasn't here for me. 

 

I watch him turn and slowly get further away. Even when he had disappeared completely from sight I remained where I was. I looked at the empty window next to me and then at the even emptier street below. 

 

Nothing had changed but everything was different. Nothing had happened to me but I was no longer the same. My chest hurt; a tight, sharp pain that wrapped around my heart and refused to let go. Something was missing, and though I tried to reason with myself, be logical about the whole situation, I knew what it was. 

 

It was him.