Kihyun watches the sun come up the next morning, having been unable to sleep since he awoke from his nightmare. He doesn't know why the dream still affects him so much, for it's the same dream he's been having for months.
A black cloud follows him, growing bigger and bigger with every passing second. It infects all those close to him, making his friends and family turn away from him. He's eventually left alone to live  the rest of his days in involuntary isolation. Eventually, his dream self decides life to just not be worth it anymore. He finally realizes just how worthless he is, just how much his existence doesn't matter, and he decides to erase himself from this uncaring world. 
He always manages to wake up before he does it, though.
A snore comes from across the room, distracting Kihyun enough from his dream to glance over at Hoseok. The older is sleeping soundly, completely unaware of Kihyun's nightmare. A part of him wants to talk to him about it, getting the sense that he'd be a great person to have listen to it. He could possibly even help Kihyun resolve whatever it is causing this recurring nightmare, and therefore help him do away with it.
"Why burden him with it?" the voice asks in a cooing tone. "He wouldn't be able to help you if you did. No one is able to help you. They can't fix how much of a waste you are. Only you can."
Kihyun shakes his head, getting up and slipping on some shoes. He throws on a hoodie, and writes a quick note to the older in case he doesn’t return before Hoseok wakes up. He then grabs his keys and phone and leaves, needing to clear his head.

The young man walks around campus, enjoying the serene calm of dawn. No one is ever out this early, which is what makes this his favorite part of the day. A slight fog hovers at Kihyun's ankles as he nears his destination, wrapping itself around him. He feels comforted by the fog, for some reason. 
He comes to the dock, sitting on the pier and dangling his feet over the river. He always comes here whenever he needs to figure things out. It's a sanctuary, of sorts. It’s the only place the voice doesn’t ever bother him at. No one is ever here when he comes, mostly because he always finds himself coming here at sunrise. It's a calming place, the current of the water always constant. It's nice for Kihyun to think that some things, like the current of the river, will always stay the same. He used to believe that Hyunwoo and him would always be that stable. God, how he wants to go back to that.
He sighs, leaning back on his hands. If he could just stay here forever... Well, that'd be paradise. His fingers stretch out against the wooden planks, scraping against a rock. Kihyun glances over at the object, picking it up thoughtfully.
If I can’t spend my life here, he thinks, a smile coming to him, then I’ll just take a piece with me. 
He then slips the rock into his pocket, it already giving him a sense of calm that he hasn’t felt for a long time.

Hoseok wakes up to the smell of cooking food. He stretches out the length of the bed, and sits up ruffling his hair. He squints around, attempting to discern where he is. He's always so disoriented after first waking up, equating it with waking up from the dead.
He spots Kihyun in the kitchen area of the dorm, standing over a skillet. 
"Kihyun-ah?" Hoseok asks confusedly. Kihyun turns, giving the older a small smile. Something about him seems different, seems much more at peace than the previous night.
“Good morning, hyung,” he greets. “Did you sleep well?”
“Um,” Hoseok says, Kihyun’s chipper attitude throwing him off. “I did, thanks. Did you?” Kihyun’s smile tightens slightly, telling Hoseok that he most certainly didn’t.
“I’ve slept better,” is all he says. Hoseok curiously watches him move about, wondering if his nightmare had woken him up. How long had he been awake, anyway? It usually takes Kihyun a while to become this active after waking up. Before he can ask, though, Kihyun comes over to him with breakfast. “I wanted to thank you for coming over last night,” Kihyun says softly. “You and Minhyuk have been really patient and supportive with Hyunwoo and me for the past few weeks. Hopefully this’ll be the last time we need your help like this, though.”
“No offense,” Hoseok says as he takes the food, “but that’s great to hear.” They share a laugh, and Kihyun leaves to retrieve his own food before sitting on the floor.

They eat in silence, but this time it isn’t nearly as tense as as last night. Kihyun’s easygoing mood is a refreshing change from the frazzled mess he was then. Hoseok swallows his last bite, having eaten quickly so as not to be late to class. He takes the dishes to the sink and rinses them off. He thanks Kihyun for the meal and begins to leave, but pauses at the door, unable to keep his questions to himself.
“Kihyun-ah,” he says, glancing at the younger, “please don’t take this the wrong way, because it’s great to see you like this, but what brought this on? It’s so different from how you were last night, or from how you’ve been for the past few weeks, for that matter.” Kihyun pauses, searching for the best way to word it.
“I guess,” he says, feeling the rock on is pocket press against his leg encouragingly, “that you could say I’ve found my inner-calm.” Hoseok stares at him, waiting for more details, but Kihyun doesn’t offer anything more. Hoseok figures he just has to accept it, and only gives the younger a smile and a nod before leaving. 

Hoseok walks into his first class after running quickly by his dorm to shower and get his things. He looks around the hall for Minhyuk, and goes to sit beside him immediately upon sighting the younger. 
“Minhyukkie,” Hoseok begins, pulling out his notebook as he speaks, “I think last night was the last time we’ll have to do the room-switch.” Minhyuk’s gaze snaps over to him, silently demanding him to continue. “First off, it’s kinda weird, how Kihyun’s attitude just did this sudden turnaround, but I’m not going to complain.”
“Hyung,” Minhyuk says, sensing a babble coming on from the older, “get to the point.”
“Right,” Hoseok chuckles. “Anyway, last night Kihyun was seeming really… unhinged, I guess. But, this morning he was acting… well… He was acting like he used to before all these fights started.”
“Really?” Minhyuk asks disbelievingly. Hoseok nods, clearly excited. “Do you know why?”
“He just said he had found his inner-peace or something,” Hoseok explains with a shrug. “I don’t know what happened, but at the same time I’m not going to question it too much. I mean, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, ya know.” He pauses, the lights in the room dimming. Their professor steps up to the podium, bringing up the powerpoint presentation.
“He did ask me last night about self-esteem issues,” Hoseok whispers thoughtfully. “I told him that everyone goes through it, that it’s nothing to be ashamed of. Maybe that helped him more than I realized.” 
Minhyuk hums thoughtfully, his hand already writing what the professor is saying. He doesn’t know quite what to say to Hoseok’s news. Such a sudden change from Kihyun is so unexpected, it’s so terribly hard to believe. Of course, all these fights were really sudden, too. So, maybe Kihyun was really just going through self-esteem issues? Maybe Hoseok had helped unknowingly with a seemingly simple comment, like in the movies? 
He sighs, shaking his head to refocus on the lecture. He guesses he’ll just have to wait and see how he is at lunch.