This is lightly edited because I will not stress myself over this. Ah, I am already regretting it. What have I done lmao.

It was three in the morning, and Lee Taemin, third year student with the worst luck possible, was staring at his computer screen – contemplating life; the good, the bad… the ugly. The good: he got all his classes successfully enrolled thanks to his best friend. The bad: his best friend was in none of his class sections. And the ugly: his schedule. His schedule was the ugly.

“It’s…not that bad. If you think, really think about it. With a—with a positive mind.” His friend said, trying to make him feel a little better – an attempt to make him see that there’s people with worst class schedules than him.

It was a failed attempt.

“I have a class at 8pm Ravi. Eight! And the class before that finishes at 2:20pm!” Taemin exclaimed, ignoring Ravi’s wince at how awful it truly was. There was no making it better. His schedule for Tuesdays and Thursdays was terrible. Period. “That’s almost six hours in between!”

“You can take naps, maybe? Or even work.” Ravi suggested, but Taemin was too done with it and sleep deprived to listen. The semester hadn’t even started yet, and he was already dreading going to university.

Ravi’s last suggestion kept him awake at night during his last week of vacation, so once his classes started, he tried to apply for a job at his campus.

Only to find out that they were full. Most students are as broke as him – and a bit faster than him too, apparently, because all the spots were taken.

“Are you sure there’s nothing?” He asked, doing his best to show his genuine need and desperation for a job between those six hours he has free.

“Well, there’s this new non-profit project that we are launching, if you’re interested.” The lady commented, taking out a flyer with pictures of books and children and hospitals. “It’s called Into the New World with Books. It’s a project that focuses on reading to the children that are staying for a long period of time in the hospital that’s 20 minutes from here.”

Taemin gave a closer look to the flyer and found all types of doctors’ names and public figures that give money to this hospital. It gave him that very expensive, very prestigious but still very accessible feel. It seemed nice.

“It’s non-profit for the hospital and it’s patients.” The lady added, confusing Taemin’s silence with hesitance. “This project has sponsors and big names backing it up for the time being, so you will be paid – like a student, of course. So, if you’re good with kids and are charismatic enough, you could give it a try. You’d be the first one, it’s a new project after all.”

Taemin’s lips pursed in thought. He has always gotten along with his younger cousins, and he likes to think he’s charismatic. He also almost begged for a job. What else is he going to do? Say no?

A month passed since that day. Taemin had countle