- Yerin’s POV -

“Yerin, hurry up!” My best friend, Hana, yelled, running to the entrance of our new apartment building. I tried to catch up to her, running out of breath. 

My best friend since childhood, Hana, and I just graduated from college in America and decided we needed to look for jobs somewhere. So, we decided to rent an apartment together in the city of Seoul, Korea, which was our hometown. It took us a while to convince our parents in allowing us to do so, but we eventually got them to comply. They even provided us with some money for the meantime while we searched for jobs.

“Yerin, come on!” She screamed once again, dragging her suitcase inside the building as the doorman opened the door. I rolled my eyes, following behind her. 

“You know, it’s not like the apartment building’s gonna move,” I said, out of breath.

“Oh, I know, I know. I’m just excited! It’s not every day where you get the opportunity to move to the city with your best friend. I mean, we’re independent women now! We can be wild, party, get crazy, and-“

“Get jobs, you mean,” I corrected.

“You are such a party pooper,” she said, lightly punching my arm. I chuckled, lifting my suitcase and getting inside the elevator. Hana pushed the button for the 17th floor. There were 20 floors in the building. I waited in silence as Hana continued to ramble on about all the things she was excited to do. I zoned out while she was talking about getting her nails done. After what seemed like ages, the elevator finally dinged, stopping on the 17th floor, where our apartment was located. She squealed, exiting the elevator. We roamed the carpeted hallways, searching for our new place. 17A, 17B, 17C…

“HERE IT IS!!!!!” she shouted. “Apartment 17N!” She fumbled to put the key in.

The door finally opened, revealing a fairly large plain white room with wooden floors and two glass doors that led to a balcony. There was a sofa against the wall on one side of the living room. I guess the apartment already came with some furniture. We entered, placing our luggages in the corner of the room as we looked around the place. The kitchen was right next to the living room. In it, there was already a steel fridge, a microwave, a dishwasher, a stove and oven, and a mini toaster. Next, I walked down the hallway within the apartment. At the end of the hallway was the restroom and two rooms around it on either side, facing each other. I peeked inside the room to the right to find that Hana was already inside, sitting on the bed.

“Dibs,” she chuckled. I sighed, entering the room on the left, which looked exactly like hers except everything was flipped over. The room consisted of a closet with mirrored doors, a bed, and a mini bedside table. I went to go grab my luggage and brought it inside my room. I then slipped off my shoes and lay down on the sheet-less bed. Suddenly, my phone buzzed in my back pocket. I answered it. It was my mum.

“Umma.”

“Yerin, sweetie! How are you and Hana? Are you okay? Are you already in your new apartment? Please tell me you are!”

“Relax, ma, we’re fine. We just arrived,” I chuckled. My mum could be so worrisome sometimes.

“That’s good to hear. I’ve got to go soon because I have a meeting to attend, but I just called in to check up on you. Jae and I miss you already.” Jae is my little brother. “Please take care of yourselves. And remember to always give us a call, especially if you need anything. Even if it was money, just please call. I just wanna make sure my sweetheart’s okay.” My mum’s so generous.

“Okay, ma, I promise I will. I miss you guys too. Please say hi to Jae for me.” I felt myself tearing up. I really did miss them.

“I will. Love you, sweetie. I’ve gotta go now.”

“Bye ma, love you too. Take care.” I hung up.

I placed my phone on the bedside table. I lay there, staring at the plain white ceiling. Before I knew it, I felt my eyes start to droop.

Next thing I knew, I was fast asleep.