Shinwoo walked at a quick speed up to the client’s door, cleared his throat, and knocked. A middle-aged woman with one eyebrow raised opened the door. “It’s about time. My sink has been acting up since this morning when I called you!”

     As he was led to the kitchen, Shinwoo carried his toolbox with sweaty palms. He was already nervous after hearing how irritated her voice was. “I’m sorry about that, Miss. That must’ve been my uncle on the phone. He’s the one in charge.”

     With a disapproving shake of her head, the lady complained, “Well, you can tell your uncle that he’s doing a terrible job running his business. Just look at my floor! It’s soaked! Please fix it now before I settle for another company.”

     “Yes, Ma’am,” Shinwoo nodded and opened the cupboard under the sink to look at the pipes. “Do you know the problem?”

     “My kids are known to stuff little toys down the drain,” she shrugged. “That could be the problem.”

     Shinwoo tried to recall everything his uncle taught him about blocked pipes as he loosened one… But it was the wrong pipe. Instead of loosening the pipe to the drain, he accidentally unscrewed the one to the water line, making water spray all over him and the floor around. 

     The lady didn’t move from her spot, keeping an eye on him as water sprayed everywhere. “Ya! Are you here just to make the situation worse? Fix it!”

     While being sprayed in the face, Shinwoo desperately tried to close the pipe. Once that was done, he moved onto unclogging the drain. It was too dark under the sink to see, so with the help of his flashlight, Shinwoo ducked underneath. All at once, when he loosened the pipe, a bunch of old chunks of food fell onto him, getting on his hair and glasses. 

     Returning with towels, the lady handed them to him with a scowl. “Why on earth would you crawl under a clogged sink? Haven’t you ever done such a simple task?”

     “I-I’m so sorry,” Shinwoo tried to wipe the mess off him without gagging. “Neomu jwaesonghamnida! I’ll finish up with this sink and clean up all the water,” he returned to the sink once more, working harder than ever. 

     She stomped out of the room, only to return when he was finished mopping the floor. With a shaky hand, Shinwoo gave her the bill. “I knocked off half the price for the inconvenience. I am really sorry about everything.”

     Shinwoo flinched as she tore up the paper and threw it in the trash. “I’m not paying for a service that left me hanging for hours, only to get someone inexperienced repairing my sink. I have things to do and places to be. Now I have to start making my kids dinner before they come home from school.” She scrambled around the kitchen, forgetting that he was still there. 

     Shinwoo nodded slowly, “I… I understand.” He left without another word. 

     Still stinking and dripping wet, Shinwoo trudged back to his apartment building, debating if he should call his uncle or not. This was the fourth time this month he had made a mistake at work, and he didn’t want to let his uncle down once again. He really wanted to quit his job, but that would mean he would have to find another, and that was a difficult task. 

     Shinwoo reached into his pockets. Besides his cellphone, he had only a few thousand won, and he knew he didn’t have much more at home. He suddenly remembered that his rent was due soon. He already paid late last month, and he didn’t want to do it again, or else he would be afraid of getting evicted. He had to find a way to get money! And soon!

     Music drifted across the street to Shinwoo’s ears and he followed it. There were two musicians playing simultaneously on guitars. The man and woman looked so happy as they strummed intricate notes, playing a joyful tune that made Shinwoo forget his troubles for a moment. He didn’t know how long he stood there listening, but after a few songs, the street musicians stopped for a water break. Shinwoo found himself walking forward and dropping his spare change into their guitar case. 

     “Gamsahamnida,” the lady said as they both smiled at Shinwoo. 

     Shinwoo smiled back before walking away, heading once again for his apartment. 

     He started thinking about B1A4 and how much he would love to work with his bandmates and make enough money to support himself. Making music and performing for a living was his dream years ago, and it still was. As he walked, he built up more determination to make the band successful. 

     In fact, Shinwoo was so excited to be able to quit his plumbing job and only work with B1A4 that he almost didn’t hear his phone ring. “Oh, I hope it’s not Samchon,” he said, dreading to speak to his uncle. After a deep breath, he stopped to look at the caller ID. It was Baro. “Yeobosaeyo?... Baro, you there?”

     All he could hear was panting into the phone until there was finally a whisper, “Hyung, I-I really need help… Jinyoung is chasing me…”