"Hey, young man. You're sleeping on the roof again. Go back to your room."
Han Junwoo stirred from his sleep, smacking his lips a couple of times before grunting as he tried to open his eyes. The brightness was blinding, and his face felt really hot. The second thing he felt was that his back really hurt.
He finally opened his eyes, seeing how the blue sky stretched clearly above him. His clothes were damp with morning dew, and concrete pressed against his back. It felt cold.
"What's the point of paying rent for an apartment if you're just going to keep sleeping on the roof?"
Granny Hyerin grumbled under her breath, picking up her watering can and filling it up with the tap water.
Junwoo propped himself up with his elbows, eyes blinking slowly as he tried to get rid of the remnants of sleep still clinging to his eyelids. The city spread below—rooftops, laundry lines, and birds strutted near the ledge, pecking at some insects.
He rubbed his eyes and stretched, joints stiff. When he got up, he looked over at the old woman who was busy watering her plants.
"Good morning, halmeoni," (a/n: it means grandmother/grandma).
Hyerin only grumbled her greeting in response, shooing him away.
Junwoo yawned before walking toward the door and down the stairs.
He tried to remember what day it was as he walked back to his apartment. Thursday? Friday? If it's Friday, he'll need to make sure it's not eleven in the morning because he promised to pick up his best friend from his job interview at that time.
Junwoo patted his pockets to find his keys, but when he found none, he tried twisting the doorknob, and it opened. Huh. He must've forgotten to lock it.
When he stumbled inside, he closed the door behind him and immediately tried to find his phone. He found it charging in the living room, right on the floor. He rubbed his eye with the back of his hand as he reached for his phone and yanked the cable off.
Once the phone blinked awake, he checked that it was indeed Friday.
The screen lit up—9:03 a.m. He squinted at it, his mind slow to catch up. Two hours remaining before he had to head out to pick up his best friend. He still had plenty of time to go back to sleep.
Wait, wait. He's probably going to wake up late. Junwoo figured that a quick, brisk shower was the best way to stay awake. So, he took one. Once he's done, he dresses in his usual oversized black shirt and grey sweatpants. He looked at himself in the mirror while grabbing his toothbrush from the mug on the basin.
While brushing his teeth, he blankly stared at his own reflection. His red hair stuck out in uneven angles, his skin looked paler under the bathroom light, and his eyes were still half-closed. He couldn't wait to go back to sleep again.
Triing~ Triing~
His phone rang from the living room. Junwoo spat, rinsed his mouth, and wiped his face with a clean towel before heading out.
Minjoon's name flashed on the screen. Junwoo swiped to answer.
"Oh, thank God," Minjoon's voice came through. He released a long exhale of relief, which seemed exaggerated. "You're alive. I've been texting you for an hour!"
Junwoo took a seat on his couch with a grunt. "You sound like an overly clingy girlfriend."
"Dude, don't joke like that," Minjoon groaned. "But anyway, I thought you were still passed out. Don't tell me you sleep on the rooftop again?"
Junwoo didn't answer.
"..." Minjoon sighed. "Whatever. Just remember to pick me up around eleven, okay?"
"Yeah,"
"Thanks, man. Oh, my interview's about to start. Talk later!"
Minjoon hung up, and Junwoo lowered the phone from his ear. They were supposed to spend the day together—mainly because Minjoon had been very nervous about the interview for weeks and needed emotional support afterward.
And as a good best friend, Junwoo followed Minjoon's request.
Even though all he wanted to do was sleep.
But before picking Minjoon up, he decided to eat some breakfast first.
When he opened his fridge, a half-eaten apple sat sadly on the corner, browning at the edges. And a carton of milk that looked like it hadn't moved in days. Junwoo stared for a few seconds, then shut the door with a dull thud. His stomach grumbled.
Time for groceries.
He grabbed his phone, wallet, and keys from the counter. He put on his jacket and yawned as he stepped out. Once he reached the elevator, he pressed the button and rubbed his eyes again. Was he cursed to be sleepy every time?
When the door slid open, a girl stood inside. She gasped. Her face flushed pink as she pressed herself to the side to make room. Junwoo stepped in, hit the ground floor, and waited as the door closed.
He could see from his peripheral vision that the girl kept sneaking glances at him. Finally, she cleared her throat. "Um—excuse me?"
Junwoo turned his head slightly, more like a tilt to the side, and side-glanced her. She blinked rapidly, and the color on her cheeks seemed to become darker.
"A-are you an... idol?" she stammered.
"No," Junwoo replied flatly, feeling like he had answered that question hundreds of times over the past few years.
"Oh..." the girl fidgeted with her fingers. "Then, um. Can I get your number?"
Junwoo recited a random string of numbers without hesitation, and the girl fumbled to type them on her phone. The elevator dinged, and Junwoo stepped out before she could say anything else.
The moment he stepped out, he could see people's heads turn toward him.
When he walked on the sidewalk, a group of girls giggled as they walked past him. A random kid froze mid-step, eyes wide, and his mouth went slack as he kept staring at Junwoo. Another guy did a double-take on him and walked straight into a pole, the metal clang echoing.
Junwoo kept walking. None of it surprised him anymore. The stares, the whispers, people approaching him to ask for his number, or some acquaintances and "friends" stayed close because of his looks.
Minjoon said he was a distraction just by existing, mentioning that people couldn't help but stare at the handsome, mysterious-looking red-haired guy. Junwoo never understood this.
Since the only thing he remembered seeing was his own face, it was his mother.
The thought made his jaw clench.
Right, he needed to focus on buying groceries and not let his thoughts stray to his past.
"E-Excuse me!" A random girl stopped him, her face blushing. "A-Are you famous?"
Junwoo stared down at her tiredly.