Jonghyun found himself outside Jinki's door again the next day. The door opened and the kind, smiling face poked out. 

“Oh, hi Jonghyun.” Jinki said, opening the door for him. 

“Good morning.” Jonghyun simply said. “Do you need me to clean the room a bit, or something?” 

“Nah, there's no need. Would you like a cup of coffee? I have some in the kitchen.” Jinki asked. Jonghyun nodded, and the older went into the small kitchen. A moment later, a cup was placed in front of Jonghyun, and Jinki took a seat opposite him. 

“So, have you had a nice day so far?” Jinki asked. Jonghyun nodded. 

“And you still like to work here?” Jinki continued his “interrogation”.

“Yeah, it's good.” Jonghyun answered. The corners of Jinki's mouth rose slightly, without breaking into the angelic smile he had had yesterday. 

“Planning on telling me your true opinion?” Jinki asked. Jonghyun assumed his facial expression looked absoloutely ridiculous. He had always considered himself good at lying, and this wasn't even a complete lie, only a half lie.

“I'm quite good at reading people.” Jinki said. “Being at a place like this can't be easy. Believe me, I've lived here for a year.” Jinki said, his voice not giving away the dark undertones of the comment. 

“To tell you honestly, it is kinda weird working a place like this. I'm expected to be around people as if they're not all just weeks away from dying.” Jonghyun said, only realizing how his words could have affected the man sitting across from him. 

“Oh god, I'm so sorry. I...I...I didn't mean it like that.” Jonghyun stuttered, trying not to make Jinki feel even more hurt than he was. 

“Don't apologize. It's not a secret that this place is only taking in people who are actually dying, people who have no chance of recovery. We all know that we're dying.” Jinki said, and again, his voice didn't contain the seriousness of his statement. 

“But why are you working here, if you don't like it?” Jinki asked. Jonghyun contemplated for a moment, before deciding to tell him the truth. 

“I have to provide for my 3 younger siblings, and this was one of the only jobs I could find.” Jonghyun said, looking at the floor. 

“I'm sorry.” Jinki said suddenly, almost startling Jonghyun. 

“Why are you apologizing?” Jonghyun asked, slightly shocked. 

“I don't know, but it feels like the right thing to do.” Jinki said. 

The 2 continued talking for a while, so long in fact, that Jonghyun completely forgot the time and had to buy some fast-food for himself and his siblings on the way home. 

Suddenly, the promise of avoiding personal attachments seemed incredibly difficult. Especially when it involved at boy with an angelic smile, and an even more beautiful personality. 

Jonghyun didn't even notice how cold it was outside, or that small white flakes had started falling around him. 

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An: so, I will be picking up the pace a little from here on. I just needed a few chapters to get everything established. But now, we can get to the fun stuff = JongYu. 

Merry December 3rd❤️