The ominous footsteps thudding behind you began to quicken their pace. Muted by the out-dated carpet of the hallway, you felt your heart beat grow louder as you too began to walk faster. You were only picturing a horrid mass murderer, a burglar or a pursuing you in your vulnerable state. Never had the sight of the mundane wooden door to your apartment looked so comforting as you began to subtly fumble for your keys.

You stifled a scream and spun around violently as the attacker’s hand made contact with your shoulder. The man standing in front of you did not look at all like a convicted criminal of any sort. In fact he looked completely and utterly…beautiful. Even that was an understatement. A knot in your stomach made you aware of its presence as you found yourself getting lost in this man’s mesmerising eyes. His hand, delicate but extruding manliness shifted a strand of hair out of his eye and you watched in fascination as his pink, thin lips moved in perfect motions.

‘I’m sorry, what?’ You asked awkwardly as you clicked out of your reverie and realised that this god was talking to you.

‘I think you dropped this out of your handbag, down the hallway.’ He repeated himself in a low husky voice that any girl would succumb to. He had a distinct accent that for some strange reason made him even more attractive. You looked to see that he was holding your pink earphones.

‘O-oh, thank you.’ You managed to croak. Realising that your previous state of panic was completely unnecessary and stupid. This man had been running after you to give you back your earphones.

‘Don’t mention it. I wouldn’t survive a day without my headphones.’ He smiled, your chest tightened at the perfection. His teeth weren’t perfectly straight but there was something so genuine in that sign of happiness.

‘Yeah, my day would kinda without music.’ You shuffled from one foot to the other, nervous to be talking to a guy, let alone an extremely handsome one.

‘Life would without music.’ He replied almost philosophically. ‘Well, I’ll let you go. I’m Donghae by the way.’

‘I’m Yerin. Nice to meet you.’ You placed your cold hand in his and shook hands.

‘Nice to meet you too, neighbour.’ He held onto your hand that bit longer, the rough skin of his palms was somewhat comforting.

‘Neighbour?’ Are you in A10?’

‘A12, actually.’

‘Wow. Well, I guess I’ll definitely be seeing you around.’ You replied.

‘Yeah, and if there’s anything you need, just give me a shout.’

‘Thanks, same goes for me. Well, good night Donghae.’ You smiled before leaving to take those few steps towards your door.

‘Sweet dreams.’ Donghae smiled.

You lay in bed that night, replaying the way Donghae smiled at you, the way his long, warm fingers brushed yours as he handed over your misplaced earphones.

A thin wall separated the two of you and on the other side, Donghae rested on his bed, his hands placed behind his head. He stared at the ceiling, mesmerized by his memory of your long, silky hair, the way your cute, pink heart-shaped lips moved softly when you spoke. Your subtle floral fragrance lingered in his mind for the rest of the night.

~❦~

Donghae woke up from a restless 4 hours of sleep, he’d stayed up composing songs on his computer.
As for you, you felt fresh and eager for the day as you prepared breakfast. You stepped out of the apartment, coincidentally at the same moment as Donghae.

‘Hi there.’ His face lit up as he saw yours.

‘Morning.’ You chirped in reply.

‘How is it that we’ve never bumped into each other before?’ He asked curiously.

‘I dunno. It’s crazy, being neighbours and all.’

That day marked the beginning of a daily routine for both you and Donghae. It was something you both looked forward to each day. The minimal ten minutes together were spent conversing about things that you both wondered how on earth you got to those particular topics in the first place.

You discovered to Donghae’s embarrassment that he still kept a toy on his bed. A fish from his hometown, Mokpo. Every time you remembered that conversation, you would find it difficult not to giggle to yourself as you recalled the way his cheeks turned a light shade of pink as he told that story to you one morning.

Every time Donghae saw a lady wearing lipstick, it would remind him of the Thursday morning that you told him about the time you ate your mum’s lipstick when you were three years old.

~❦~

Two weeks later, you were all set for your first date with Donghae. You’d come home from work one day to find a piece of paper that had been slipped under your door. You smiled to yourself as you read it.

Hey neighbour! Here’s my number: 9472180699
Just letting you know, just in case you need something…like a date?
Donghae.

You dialled his number that night and found it ridiculous that you were talking to someone on the phone who was located right next to your bedroom wall. You could hear his voice mumbling through the wall as you arranged your date.

The two of you went to the cinema to watch an action movie. He insisted that you choose what movie to watch but you didn’t want to expose the hopeless romantic in you by picking the latest romantic comedy.
You had absolutely no idea what was going on in the movie. There were just an infinite amount of guys chasing each other with guns and fast cars.
All you could remember was smiling like an idiot when you looked at Donghae after he childishly yawned and stretched his arm to place lightly across your shoulders.
You felt  a piece of popcorn thrown at your face halfway through the movie.

‘Do you know what’s going on?’ Donghae whispered.

‘No idea.’ You answered truthfully.

‘Good. Me either.’

And with that, you both walked out of the theatre like a couple of excited teenagers. You found yourselves strolling along the Han River. Donghae insisted that you wear his jacket (which smelt amazing), even though you weren’t that cold. He explained that he’d dated a girl back in junior high but she caught a cold after going out with him one night and her parents never let her see him again.
It was just about midnight when you were at the doors of your apartments.

‘I would kiss you, I really want to. But I think that’s a bit predictable. And I’m not a predictable guy.’ Donghae stated. You laughed at how young and innocent this guy made you feel.

‘Shall we settle for a hug then?’ You suggested. With that, you were embraced in a tender hug. Donghae’s strong arms holding you tightly, as if you were the most precious thing in the world to him. You didn’t want to let go, but when you did, you both found a smile planted on each other’s face.

‘You better watch out for an unpredictable kiss.’

‘I’ll be on the lookout.’ You giggled.

‘Ok, maybe I was lying. I’m not that unpredictable. I keep my spare key under my doormat. Just letting you know in case you wanna make the first move with that kiss. Now that would be unpredictable.’ You smiled at his comment. It was good to know that you’d gained his friendship and trust.

‘Ok, you better watch out as well, then. Tonight was really fun. Thank you.’

‘We’ll have to do it again sometime. Good night.’ Donghae showcased that smile that you had come to love.

‘Good night. Sweet dreams.’ You almost whispered.

~❦~

Another two weeks flew by and the only thing that really got you out of bed each morning was the possibility that Donghae might finally kiss you. After two weeks, you were beginning to think that he forgot about the spontaneous kiss he was planning to surprise you with.
You walked out of your apartment to find Donghae already outside your door, waiting just for you.

‘Good mo-’ You began before you felt a pair of soft, warm lips take yours. Donghae’s hand gently held the side of your face as he kissed you with such tenderness that it took your breath away. You closed your eyes after the initial shock and enjoyed every moment of the movement of his lips. It was definitely worth those two weeks of waiting.

‘Good morning, beautiful.’ Donghae spoke softly, his lips still lingering on yours. He tucked a strand of hair behind your ear before finally leaving your lips.

‘Um, hi.’ You replied awkwardly, still disorientated by his intoxicating kiss.

‘Well, judging by your look, that was completely unpredictable.’ He chuckled at your stunned expression. You quickly regained  your composure before the two of you began to make your way down the hall to the elevator. For the first time, he took your hand as you walked. Your small hand was placed safely in his.

‘Aw man, do I have to go to work now?’ You whined as you both arrived at your cars.

‘Here’s one more for the road.’ Donghae said before placing another gentle kiss on your lips.

~❦~

That night, something was different. You still hadn’t heard Donghae come back home. You still couldn’t hear the muffle of songs playing through the wall that separated your two apartments. He was meant to be home two hours ago. There was a possibility that he had somewhere to go but surely he would’ve mentioned something about it. What was with this guy always making you wait?

There was a knock on the door. Strange. Donghae would usually dump his stuff in his apartment after work. Maybe because we’re basically a couple now, things will be totally different, you pondered to yourself.

You opened the door to two police offers. The short, stockier one was the one to speak.

‘Good evening. We’re sorry to disturb you.’

‘It’s fine, officer. You’re not disturbing me at all.’ For some reason, your voice began to shake.

‘We’ve just come here to ask you about your neighbour, Mr Lee Donghae.’

‘Yes, that’s him. Why do you ask, officer?’

‘He was involved in a car crash. We’re sorry to say this, but he just passed away in hospital.’ The taller of the two men provided the news.

‘We’re sorry to have brought such bad news.’

‘I…’ You began before choking on your words.

The officers soon left. There wasn’t much they could do to comfort you. You preferred to be alone anyway. As soon as you closed the door, you sank to the floor, tears beginning to streak your face. You sat there until you felt as though there were no more tears left in you. Everything was so perfect this morning, you never thought that the day would end so tragically. Your eyes were heavy and you stood up weakly and left the apartment. You walked the short distance to the door of Room A12. Bending down to retrieve a small key from under the mat. You unlocked the door and walked inside, sniffling at the absence of the man that you had grown to love. You’d only been here a couple of times but you knew where his room was. You made your way to that room where only a thin wall kept you two separated each night. You spotted the fish from Mokpo sitting idly on his bed. You smiled to yourself, letting your tears seep into your mouth for you to taste the saltiness. You walked over to his desk, the one with a computer and recording equipment. There was a CD labelled with a single hand drawn love heart. You placed it in the CD player and listened to it. All you could do was cry because now you realised just how much you would miss him. Now you realise what the two of you could have had. You listened to the lyrics that were dedicated to none other than you. All those nights that you had heard music playing through that wall, it was him, composing songs just for you. You laid down on his bed as you listened to the CD for the umpteenth time, your tears continued to fall and the last thing you heard before sleep took you was the gentle sound of Donghae singing:

‘I lay awake at night, hoping that one day I will be strong enough to confess.
I love you, my girl.’ 

~❦~

Thank you my darling readers and subscribers! I hope you liked this oneshot. I'm really sorry for the lame ending. Such an unoriginal way to kill off a character but ya know...I thought it was kinda the most realistic way that he would die for this story. Anyhoo, thanks for the support and I would really appreciate some comments, tell me what you think! PLEEEASEU~~ 
Much love <3