That night you patted your face with moisturizer and dipped a cotton swab into a pink powdery liquid. From the cotton swab you dotted your face where you felt there were oncoming pimples. The heat in your bathroom was comfortable. With the help of your yellow slippers, your feet were cozy and warm.

You fixed your white towel around you and smiled at your reflection. A sudden banging at your door scared you. You froze, unsure of how to react.

Another loud knock made you squirm as you dashed into your bedroom. You locked it and grabbed your phone off your bed in case you needed to call someone. You checked it and clearly, it couldn’t be your Grandfather. You had no missed calls from him.

Suddenly your phone vibrated and a few text messages came from Seokmin.

Where are you? Are you ok?

Please reply back when you get this message.

I’ve been looking for you all evening.

A few more knocks came at your door and instead of texting you dialed Seokmin. As soon as he picked up you squealed in a whisper, “Seokmin! Oh my gosh, someone is at my door! I’m scared! Are you home?? Come help me!!!!”

You threw your phone down and yanked your huge blanket off your bed to wrap around you. If someone was going to come in and kill you, you could at least die in dignity.

Seokmin’s worry vanished the instant he heard your voice. He spoke into the phone but you did not reply. He hung up and yelled, “SORRY!! IT WAS JUST ME KNOCKING AT YOUR DOOR!!”

At the sound of Seokmin’s voice you cracked open your bedroom door and stared out into your dark living room.

Out of anger and relief you shouted, “WHY WOULD YOU SCARE ME TO DEATH???!!! ARE YOU ASKING TO BE REPORTED TO THE POLICE???”

“I DIDN’T SEE YOU ALL DAY, I WAS WORRIED!”

You gripped your blanket and towel tightly and slowly walked out to open your front door. Seokmin saw your face peek through as you eyed him evilly.

You almost fell over as Seokmin shoved your door open to pull you into a hug. He had no clue you were under the massive bed cover around you. You shoved him off and distanced yourself away from him while clutching tightly to your towel underneath.

“WHAT is going on!?” you asked.

“I thought something happened…”

“What are you talking about? It’s almost midnight…why are you not at your place sleeping?”

Seokmin stared at you and suddenly broke into a giggle when he noticed the dots of pink powder all over your face. Although you looked silly, Seokmin was glad you were ok. The last thing he wanted to see was you unconscious lying somewhere. He sighed out of relief and felt his heartbeat slow in his chest. He stared at you with unwavering eyes.

“HELLO??” you asked, “Can you explain why you’re here THIS late banging on my door?? And who are you anyway?”

“What do you mean?”

“I thought your name was Seokmin. Why did Dino call you DK the other day?”

“Oh…DK is short for Dokyeom. My friends and people know me by that name,”

You thought for a bit, “IF you’re Seokmin, then what am I scared of??”

“Silly,” Seokmin replied, “There’s only one me. Of course you’re scared of the dark. That’s why I slept in that gym and had a back ache for a week,”

You made a face from his statement.

Seokmin sighed, “Have a good night. And don’t think about doing anything stupid. Remember I live next door and I could knock down your door if I wanted to,”

You eyed him as he exited and closed your front door behind him.

“Are you crazy or something?!” you questioned while securing your door by locking it into place.

“Maybe just a little!” Seokmin replied from outside.

“It was a rhetorical question!”

In disarray, you swung around to head back into your room. Why was Dokyeom acting so different? Either he needed sleep or medication. Because you were definitely not unconscious lying somewhere.

That next day you got ready earlier and headed over to the post office. The line of customers extended out passed th