“You don’t remember me- at all?”

I have an interesting story to share with you. And maybe, I, myself also included in this story. But what is my role? It all will be revealed soon if you sat back on your chair or simply lying on your bed and reading to what I about to say. And here we go.

It was the third day of September where the autumn came earlier than before, the sky was still dark and the chilly air still hanging around, sending every single breathing creature a shiver ran down their spine. The king of daylight hasn’t fully awake but people has started to get busy with their life, some of them walking down on the street with a thick sweater, warming their body while a shawl warping their neck protectively. Just like the other people, a black-haired man wearing his sapphire blue sweater with shawl and gloves warping perfectly around his neck and hands walking comfortably while humming random song, totally taking his time. His hawk-liked eyes were dazzlingly greeting every people who greets him combined with his infamous gummy smile, he is perfect just by a glance. With his thin but muscular figure and his expression he had on his face, people would feel a different aura from him, warm and friendly. He walking swiftly but stopped when he reached a not too big cake shop around the area, he looked around while his right hand reached his jeans pocket, searching for something. He smiled when he found the thing, he quickly unlocked the door and shoved it back inside his pocket.

“Good morning, Hyukjae.” A deep voice greeted him once he stepped inside the kitchen. He smiled as he looked up.

“Harbae, you already here.” He said cheerfully while glancing at the kitchen table.

The old man nodded his head, “We got some late order last night when you already went home, so, I came earlier than usual. But, kid, could you please give me some respect? You even didn’t greet me back.” The grandpa wear his angry looks while rubbing his dirty hands with a towel.

Hyukjae slipped out a light chuckle before he took a step back and smiled, he bowed wholeheartedly to the old man. “Good morning, Harbae. I’m sorry, my mistake.” His gummy smile reached his eyes when he raised up from the bow. The old man patted his shoulder while lifting a warm smile on his face.

That was a very common picture in Hyukjae’s life. He could easily getting close with parents and old people without having so much trouble and he just followed the flow when he was around them. He really likes people, having an awkward situation with them is a no for him. My parent also falling for him, he even beat me when it comes to this case.

 “Harbae, where is my outfit? I think I put it here last night.” The black-haired man asked while his head peeked out at the door way.

“I took it to the laundry this morning, all of your clothes.”

“What?!” Hyukjae squeaked out. “All of it?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“You piled them up.”

“Harbae, but stil—”

“No, it’s dirty, kid.”

“But I’m—”

“HYUKJAE, we are working in a shop. A CAKE shop.” The old man snapped.

The younger rolled his eyes, he stepped out of the room and walking towards the old man. “Okay then.” He stopped and leaned against the refrigerator, eyeing the older back. “So, it means I can’t help you in the kitchen.”

“Yes, you won’t.”

“So?”

“What’s with that so, kid? You still have another things to do besides helping me here.” The grandpa simply answered, eyes still on his works.

“No, I mean—it’s impossible for me to work in my casual outfit, right?”

 The older lips escaped a heavy sigh as he looked up from his works, he put down a bowl of whipped cream and grabbed a towel. He turned around while rubbing his hands, cleansed it from any dirt. His brows furrowed while looking at the younger, he stared at him up and down before a smug smile appeared on his lips.

“What?” Hyukjae asked confusedly while following the older eyes.

“Nothing.”

Hyukjae crinkled his forehead and staring at the older with confusion covering his gaze. He narrowed his eyes for a while, processing the strange smile on the older face before he realized the older had planned something for him. “No.” He retorted nonchalantly.

But this grandpa was a strong head stone that ever existed- at least for Hyukjae. He just shrugged off, still irritating the younger with his smug smile while turning back to his works. “It’s up to you, kid. I’m just suggesting thing.”

Hyukjae inhaled deeply before letting himself blew the hot air out from his mouth in frustration, he straighten his back properly before turned away to staff room again. “Okay, but I object this idea.” He paused when he reached the door, his right hand on the knob. “There’s no way for me to just wearing a wifebeater while the air is insanely freezing like this. Hell, I won’t.”

And by that, he slammed the door leaving the laughing old man behind alone. The grandpa likes to teasing the younger a lot because sometimes his reaction was just behind the imagination, sulking like a kid or simply pouting all the day. He never saw Hyukjae in a bad mood, like angry and things, Hyukjae always hiding his feeling very well from the other. His eyes never lost its glint, his voice never shaken in fear and his steps always doubtless without any hesitation but beyond all of it something he didn’t know was waiting for him to be exposed soon. When people ask you about a mystery, he is one of a million mysteries that ever happened in this world. No one knows about him. Who is he? What he had done before? It doesn’t matter because no one would catch the unseen reflection of him. The reflection that he himself had never been remember even in his unstoppable memories.

And it was about eleven in the night when he decided to go home after cleansed up everything in the shop, leaving Harbae alone again. It has been a year and half for him to work with Harbae, and it also has been a year and half for him to wake up in an unknown place. He once confused about where he was and why he was there, but the most thing that made him more confused was he did remember about his name, his age, his birthday, his parent and someone named Henry but there were no memories about his life and the place he had been lived before. Until one morning when he felt to leave all the taboo behind and stepped out from his room, he spotted an average height man with his white hair and wrinkle around his eyes, wearing a loose wifebeater and short smiling to him in front of his room door. This old man holding a pancake on his right hand and a newspaper on his left, felt so stranger about the man, he reacted in his reflex, slightly bowing and asked him about what he was doing in front of his room, and that was the beginning of Hyukjae’s life.

He was staring at his front door, hand on the knob, unlocking the door. And when he stepped in, he could feeling the air was suffocating, the low voice of the old man still ringing loudly lingering against the four walls while images of the past keep flashing through his mind. By the mere thought about it, he could feel the chilly air tighten its hold around his apartment, he was lonely at home, no one around, no one speaking with him, he was lonely and he hated it. With the last heavy breath slipped out from his mouth, he stepped forward lightly, thinking about something positive from his loneliness, a romantic movie should be enough to wash everything over. He smiled and walked directly to the kitchen. Grabbing something before humming happy song and walked back to his room. ‘Let’s having fun!’

Hyukjae was lying on top his fluffy bed, mouth slightly parting and breathing calmly through his sharp nose covered by a thick white blanket around his body but slightly exposed his bare shoulder. He unconditionally fell asleep while watching Titanic last night, after taking some refreshing bath and eating his late dinner; he should be slept in a nice peaceful night. Hyukjae slowly stirred from his deep slumber when his ears successfully caught the almost inaudible knocking sound on his front door, he sat up in painfully slow motion, letting the blanket revealing his perfect body and white milky skin in this earlier morning. He groaned.

“Okay, I’m on my way.” He half shouted, palming his face before exhaled and stood up carefully.

As lazy as he did, Hyukjae climbed off from the bed while eyes still perfectly closed, walking off like a zombie, ignoring the fact that he was stepping on a piece of his shirt he had been wear before but he is not Hyukjae if his room was tidy, no piled up shirt, no scattered shirt or underwear around his bedroom, I’m sure, he is not him, or maybe if it was him, but of course someone had come into his room and cleansed up everything, and that person should be the only kind man around him, Harbae. And now, he walked to the front door while rubbing his tired eyes, mumbling ‘Okay, I’m coming.’ For umpteenth times already. He stopped when his eyes wandering up on the wall, catching the sight of the clock, tick-tocking between five and four- if he didn’t see the wrong thing of course. He narrowed his sleepy eyes while forming a pout on his plump lips.

“I must be dreaming about someone knocking on my door.” He whispered and tried to listen carefully than before. Yes, no sound as a proof. He chuckled softly to his clumsiness.

‘Even in my sleep, I’m still this clumsy as ever.’ He thought and turned around, walking lazily to his room again.

“Hyukjae...”

His eyes snapped open, did he hear someone whispering his name?

Knock...knock..

“Hyukjae...”

“O-oh, yes, I’m coming.” He shouted by his reflex, still wondering about what the hell people doing in this timing, knocking on his door at four thirty in the morning. And yes, there was someone knocking on his door while calling out his name in very low tone. Mysteriously.

With a very positive thought inside his head, Hyukjae bravely leaning his eyes on the peep hole, just simply checking that ‘the person’ across his door was really a human, because he ridiculously thought that maybe it was just some idiotic ghosts who played in the middle of night with his door, he just shrugged his shoulder lightly and focusing himself on the creature behind his door. ‘Oh, human.’ For some odd reasons he felt relieved inside when he saw a brunette haired man back-facing his door, head never resting, looked right and left, seems he was looking for something while waiting for Hyukjae to open the door. Hyukjae pulled away from the peep hole, his right hand already stand by on the knob but another side of him doubting that it would be a good idea to open your door for a stranger. ‘Well, a stranger didn’t call you by name. B-but maybe he has been watching over me all this time while smiling wickedly with a complete data of me on his hand from far away, so I couldn’t see him and recognized him, or in another words, he is an assassin. Assassin, Hyukjae, assassin in front of your door. What if-’

With some invisible boldness and the invincible hard work of his brain cells within him, he magically had some courage to just unlocked the door and ajar it for the stranger. At first he was hesitated to open the door even wider than before, a lot of what if and how could you came up inside his head. Things such as raving, grumbling and even cursing didn’t work at this timing, he had opened the door and that person was standing there, nothing worse would be happened if he stayed calm like he always did. ‘Breath, Hyukjae. Calm down.’

“Sorry sir for waiting too long.” He perked up, lifted his usual gummy smile on the door way.

The man turned his body immediately, slowly gazing the other from his toes to head. But, he stopped when he met the confused look on Hyukjae’s face. They both kept on their ironical silence, distracted by the other look, Hyukjae felt like he knew that doe-like eyes which fixed on his creature but in the other side, the man also in the same mode with the black haired man, completely mesmerized by something on Hyukjae. I don’t think this man was an assassin, and why I even sure about this? Well, I don’t know. And how about Hyukjae? I’m not so sure too. But I think something had gone through his mind, some familiar faces and another familiar voices came up out of nowhere inside his brain, calling him back into the time he never knew before. What was that? And what was happen to him before? You’ll find out later.

Hyukjae nearly clearing his throat when the opposite man opened his mouth, mumbling something incoherently while blinking his eyes. “I’m sorry, sir. I what?”

The brunette man shook his head lightly, he step backward and frowned. “I said you’re alive, Hyukjae.” He folded his arms but the frown formed even deeper than before. “And, I’m not sir. I have name, it’s Donghae, idiot.”

Hyukjae slightly taken back with the rudeness he just heard. But instead of giving back the same rudeness to the latter, Hyukjae kindly letting the stranger in and offered him to sit while waiting for him to put his shirt on. Why he didn’t have any suspiciousness toward the stranger? I’m sure he had a reason.

“I’m sorry, Donghae-ssi. I lives alone here, I’m used to sleep without shirt.” Hyukjae walked out from his room, wearing a big plain white shirt.

The brunette rolled his eyes to the statement. “Surprisingly, I’m used to it too. I see you still have my plain shirt.” The latter glancing at the shirt Hyukjae wear. “And, I’m sure, your bedroom is full with your piled up shirt. Am I right, Hyukjae?”

Hyukjae crinkled in confused, something was about this man. “Who are you, Donghae-ssi?”

“Me? I’m Donghae. I had told you before, didn’t I?”

“Yes, I know that.” Hyukjae stared at the brunette sternly, he straight up his sit position. “I’m not playing this game with you, Donghae-ssi. Say what you want to say. I don’t want to disturb the other at this timing just for your information.” He sharply responded.

“Whoa, whoa- calm down, will you? I’m nothing like that bad guy, Hyukjae.” Donghae sighed. “You don’t remember me- at all?” He pointed up his face while worriedly staring at Hyukjae.

But the hopeless guy in front of him shook his head. “Really? Even the slightest?”

Hyukjae narrowed his eyes, scanning every inches of the brunette face carefully, his eyes stared deeply into every angle he captured from the stranger; his mind was processing the information he got from the latter’s face, he tried to dig even more into his memories, but making an axe from a needle is an impossible thing to do, just like this situation, trying even harder was nothing but useless. He indeed didn’t find any further information about this guy except he is a stranger and rude. That was it, nothing more and nothing less.

Sighed heavily, Donghae let a gush of hot breath blew out from his thin lips, resting his back against the couch in awful feeling. “Yeah, you didn’t recognize me. I get it, Hyuk. I get it.”

“I’m sorry, Donghae-ssi. Maybe you came to the wrong house.” Hyukjae voice was soft, feeling bad for the disappointment on the other face.

Donghae slipped out a light chuckle, he shook his head in amusement but bitter still concealed his voice. “I won’t forget my e- no, best friend, Hyukjae. I’m not stupid and if I went to the wrong house, why I should go miles away from Seoul just to find the wrong person?”

The black haired man bit his bottom lips in confusion, refrain himself from escaping a stressed out sigh. He did wanted to help this man, but his words were faded away as he started to open his mouth, it felt like his brain had stopped to work intentionally, knowing that he has to face this problem by heart and mind, not only with words. Donghae’s condition was nothing better than the owner of the apartment, he seemed so much in thought, blinking his eyes blankly while staring at the ground, huffing and sighing at times. The thick awkwardness between these two people was pathetically unbearable, two strangers in one room; mouth sealed earlier in the morning. What should they do if they both were clueless like this? Remain silent or what? And that was when Donghae made a move. He slowly got off from the couch- Hyukjae distracted by this sudden movement, and approached the front door.

“Okay then, Hyukjae-ssi. I’m sorry for disturbing you, maybe you are right. I got the wrong house.” He smiled weakly, shoving his hands inside his pocket. “I’ll take my leave now. Have a nice day.”

Donghae bowed for the last time before he left the dumbfounded man behind. Hyukjae blinked his eyes in confused, the sudden politeness and a disappointment look on the other face was making him feeling guilty out of blue. He really wanted to help the brunette but he could do nothing, he just sitting there while staring at his slightly open door, letting his mind hanging on some confusion after the latter had left. The brunette himself walking out from the apartment building with a ‘pang’ inside his heart, he knew the risk but he kept insisting thing. He didn’t know that the feeling would be this worse, he bowed down his head, hands on his jacket pocket, walking while kicking the gravel weakly, he huffed in depressed. At least he had tried but failed in the same time, he prayed that it would be easy for everyone but it’s a real life, nothing is going on so smoothly like a written story or even a fairy tale. Once again, he knew the risk and it was just him that kept holding on his own idealism, he had made a mistake, he have to be the one who changed everything back at their original place. ‘Because all of these are my mistake.’

If it wasn’t his phone buzzing crazily inside his pocket, maybe he would just kept on walking lifelessly without paying any attention to his surround. He groaned lightly and glanced at the caller id at his screen, he wrinkled his nose before finally pressed the answer button.

“Hello.” He greeted the other person on the other line with his usual cold but polite voice.

“No, I have to take my morning bus to Haeundae-gu. Why?”

He narrowed his eyes and glanced at his watch. The one who calling him seemed describing something because he remained silent while humming softly. “I think I won’t take bus, taxi would be better.” He mumbled to the caller.

“Yes, I’ll stay a bit longer here, Kyu. You can reserve at Dalmaji because it’s cheaper than my place.” He recommended.

The caller seemed saying something that annoyed the brunette, he frowned deeper and rolled his eyes. “No, nothing like that, Kyu. You’re wasting my money too much. For the research, for your foods and...for your internet usage bill. I should cut off your payment for gaming too much on effective times.”

“Hell, even hyung never wasting on my money this much.” He clicked his tongue to the statement the other gave him on the other line. “Yes, you are, Kyu. But we are a co-worker right now, not in cousin to cousin relationship.” He affirmed.

He responded a light snort while listening to another annoying explanation from his cousin- he always felt that way. “But...oh, wait.” He slightly took his phone a bit further from his left ear when he saw a taxi from the corner of his eyes, he waved and the taxi driver seemed got the meaning. “Okay, Kyu. I’ll call you back when I reach Haeundae-gu.” He smiled softly to the driver when the taxi had stopped in front of him.

“No, no, hyung didn’t know you and I were here.” He said while stepping inside the backseat of the taxi. His eyes was slightly widen in shock when he heard the screechy voice of his cousin who was grumbled over him being careless about his presence.

Donghae furrowed as he glance at his non-stop cursing phone, he had his right hand covered the front side of it while muttering ‘Haeundae-gu, Paradise Hotel.’ softly to the driver from the rear view mirror. The taxi driver got it, he nodded while smiling warmly to his busy-­listening boarder.

“Kyu! I’ll see you at Haeundae Station, exit seven tomorrow morning. Have a nice day.” He forcefully cut off the line before this conversation led them to another unnecessary fight. He sighed and threw his head to the head board lazily.

The taxi driver lifted a wise smile on his face, he glanced at the rear view mirror. “Having a morning fight, sir?”

Donghae propped his head slightly, he smiled. “Kind off, ahjussi. My troublesome cousin.” He answered politely in low and tired tone.

The man showed off his charming grin, “But you let him talking nonstop like that, I think he didn’t annoy you that much, am I right?”

The brunette shrugged off lightly, eyes looked down on his phone. “Well, even his annoying side would lose to his loyal side. Yeah, he is my favourite.” He raised his head and grinned back to the driver as he looked at him from the rear view mirror.

“I’m Jungsu by the way.” The man offered his broader a name card, slipped between his index finger and middle finger. “Call me when you need a taxi around Songjeong, just in case.” He smiled, showing his unclear dimple on his left cheek.

Without any hesitation, he took the name card, gave it a glance and put it inside his pocket. After a soft ‘thank you’, Donghae rested his head against the head board, blinking his sleepy eyes before drifted into his dream land, longing for some good rest before all of it began, before he couldn’t taste the mutual enjoyable feeling when he closed his eyes. This was the beginning, the real beginning from this story.

a/n : The first chapter is up. I'm sorry for the late update, thank you for reading, subscribing and even voting.

-Sim :)