Jan Di woke up alone, on the couch where she was the previous night. Stretching out her arms, she took a look at the other couch in the room where Woo Bin was still sleeping, in one of the most uncomfortable positions ever. She blinked and couldn't help but smile at the sight. Though he was probably filled with discomfort the entire night, it was like she was spending time with an ordinary person. She sat up, stretching her legs next. On the table was an empty box of pizza that the two had finished the previous night. Well, Jan Di finished the pizza—and not so proudly at this point. Woo Bin had been amazed she could eat more than he could, though he took food for granted, and she made sure that every bit was worth the price. She stood up and left the main room to get something to drink. She returned with a bottle of water, noticing Woo Bin stir. He groaned quietly, shifting upwards from the position of discomfort.
"You're awake," greeted Jan Di, sitting back down and opening the bottle of water. "Good morning."
Woo Bin placed a hand to his forehead and shook his head. "That was insanely uncomfortable." Once he sat upright, an expression of pain twisted on his facial features, and he grabbed at his ankle. "Ah!" he cried through grit teeth.
"Woo.. Woo Bin?" asked Jan Di as she set down her water bottle, concerned. "What's wrong? Are you hurt—"
"Cramp!" he groaned, screwing his eyes shut. "Cramp, oh how it hurts.."
While he massaged his ankle, in hopes of relieving himself of the painful cramp, Jan Di laughed into the back of her palm, unable to hold back the laughter at his reaction. Once the cramp died down, Woo Bin leaned back into the cushion of the couch, sighing heavily. By this time, Jan Di was still laughing.
"What's so funny?" he asked her, noticing her in her fit of laughter finally. And although the misfortune was placed onto him that morning, even he couldn't prevent a smile from forming after watching Jan Di in her moments of happiness. "Keep laughing. You'll get yours, Jan Di. Maybe not in the form of foot pain, but surely in a different way.." He gestured a single finger at the empty pizza box on the table. "That's gonna burn. And Ji Hoo will have to deal with it.." his voice trailed off at his own mention of Ji Hoo.
Jan Di assumed they were thinking the same thing.
"I wonder what's up with Ji Hoo," murmured Woo Bin, half to himself, half to Jan Di. "He said he would be back last night."
"Yeah.." murmured Jan Di. "I hope he didn't try to message me."
Woo Bin cleared his throat. "Let's not worry about Ji Hoo too much. If he were having troubles, he would have called me. Ji Hoo is a big boy."
Woo Bin was right. Still, where is he? This isn't like him at all to not come home.. Why wouldn't he come home? That was the question that echoed in her mind. No matter how she looked at it, the entire situation was peculiar at best. He's hiding something from me.
"Do you want breakfast, Jan Di?" asked Woo Bin; likely to distract her from the situation. "I'll give Ji Hoo a call in a little bit. He's probably got work.."
"Ah, what about harabeoji?" Jan Di suddenly said, getting up from the couch. But the second she mentioned Ji Hoo's grandfather, he made his way into the room.
"Sit down, Jan Di," his grandfather murmured, urging her to just sit down. "I am fine." Listening to Ji Hoo's grandfather, Jan Di nodded her head and sat down. "I noticed Ji Hoo didn't come home last night. I'm even late for work this morning because he hasn't come home yet. He said he would be here to drive me to the clinic. But my only concern is that my grandson hasn't returned.. I don't care if I open late."
"Harabeoji," murmured Jan Di.
Woo Bin nodded his head in agreement. "It is a bit weird. But he called me yesterday. He didn't mention anything.."
"That's what concerns me most," his grandfather said. "Where is he.."
Jan Di frowned a bit, but turned to look at Ji Hoo's grandfather. "Don't worry much, harabeoji. You go on to work, I'll wait here for Ji Hoo, and be here when he comes home."
"I don't know.." His grandfather looked unsure.
"It'll be okay. I'll be here, and I'll give Ji Hoo a good scolding!" she promised, smiling wide to reassure the elder. "And Woo Bin will drive you straight to work, won't you?" She looked Woo Bin's way.
He nodded his head with a smile. "Sure thing. Let me start up my car, and you can come out whenever you're ready." Woo Bin pulled on the jacket he draped over the couch that night and got off the couch; leaving to his car.
Meanwhile, Ji Hoo's grandfather simply sighed; shaking his head. "My grandson...worries everyone too much, don't you agree?"
"I always worry over Ji Hoo," agreed Jan Di. "But I'm sure everything is fine with him. Maybe he just wanted a night to hang out with friends.."
At least, she hoped that was the case. Perhaps he needed a break from her. It hurt Jan Di to think like that. Not that they couldn't take breaks from each other, but the idea that she was overwhelming to be around; exhausting, even.
"Perhaps.. But that would not be the Ji Hoo I know," murmured his grandfather, bowing his head to Jan Di. "Take care, Jan Di. And please do give my grandson a scolding when you see him."
"Definitely!" Jan Di smiled wide once more, waving as she watched him leave. Once Ji Hoo's grandfather left, she sighed to herself; curling he fingers into the fabric of her pants. "Ji Hoo.. Where are you?"
Ji Hoo woke up with an excruciating pain in his head. Similar to a headache, but much worse. He sat up, combing his fingers through his hair as he blinked several times; regaining some sense of reality. The room was dim, the only light being from the sun's rays sneaking in through the window blinds. He took a long look around the room he was in: no-longer white wallpaper, posters strung up all over, a pile of books sitting beside the bed. The bed Ji Hoo sat on was severely uncomfortable; he could basically feel the springs. It was a typical room, with little furniture. It reminded him of Jan Di's previous apartment.
"Oh, you're awake?" asked a voice.
Ji Hoo looked over at the now-open door. Through the open door, Ji Hoo could hear the murmurs of people walking through the street, along with the occasional, screeching of tires from cars stopping so suddenly at red lights. And right by the entrance stood a man with bleached, blond hair. He closed the door behind him, and plopped down on the striped beanbag.
"I don't know how long you've been awake. I just came back from my job," murmured the young man. "Oh, and I brought you some food." He tossed a brown, paper bag onto the bed where Ji Hoo sat.
Instead of peeking inside the bag, Ji Hoo stared blankly at the stranger who was now feeding him. He couldn't help but feel as though he saw him somewhere before, but the excruciating pain of the headache prevented Ji Hoo from recognizing him.
"What's the matter?" mumbled the blond man, tilting his head to the side.
"Who are you?" Ji Hoo finally asked.
"You don't remember?"
"..Not in this moment," Ji Hoo admitted, averting his gaze. Should I remember?
The blond male grinned, leaning back in the beanbag. "I'm Young Jae. From the breakfast diner?" He tapped the side of his head. "You left me a hefty tip?"
Young Jae. The name instantly rang a bell, and Ji Hoo recalled the other day meeting Young Jae, who appeared to work hard. "That's right. From yesterday afternoon?"
"Yep."
"What...am I doing here?" Ji Hoo asked next, still confused about how he ended up in Young Jae's home. "In your home?"
Young Jae laughed, partly to himself. "This looks a little bad. But I can explain. Yesterday, after my shift at the breakfast diner, I had another one at that fancy restaurant you went to last night. My shift ended around seven last night, and when I was getting ready to go home, I saw you passed out, outside the restaurant. What was I gonna do? Leave you out there?"
"So you brought me back here..?" pressed Ji Hoo.
"Yeah. I could have taken you to a hospital, but I've seen this happen so many times, I figured it was best to just bring you here. I mean, you don't want any publicity, right?" murmured Young Jae, scratching the side of his head. "..I'm sorry about the lack of respect back at the breakfast diner. I didn't realize you were Yoon Ji Hoo. Former President Yoon's grandson.."
Ji Hoo blinked, shaking his head. "No, no, it's okay.. I appreciate you just bringing me somewhere safe rather than getting the hospital involved." The last thing he needed was publicity, and most importantly, he didn't need to concern his friends or girlfriend. "So you work two jobs?"
"Ah, three jobs," corrected Young Jae, smiling. "I work at the breakfast diner, the restaurant, and I also work at a convenience store."
"Do you go to school?" asked Ji Hoo.
"No. I graduated from high school recently, so I picked up another shift." Young Jae shrugged. "I can't afford college. So...maybe after earning some money, I can afford to go. I hope so at least."
"What about your parents?" Ji Hoo questioned. Perhaps it were too many questions to a mere stranger, but Ji Hoo couldn't help his curiosity. In so many ways, Young Jae was similar to Jan Di. She wouldn't talk about her life in poverty, so he figured he would find out through another person.
"My parents? My father...is not in my life. And my mother is busy supporting my sister. I didn't like being a burden," murmured Young Jae. "I want to earn enough to support myself."
"..That's certainly burdensome in itself," replied Ji Hoo. He decided to stop questioning Young Jae, and instead peered into the brown bag. Inside was a breakfast sandwich.
"I brought that from my job. I figured you'd be hungry, but even if you're not, you should eat it," Young Jae said.
Ji Hoo felt nauseous at the sight and smell of food. "I think I'm going to be sick if I eat this."
"You're going to be sick if you starve yourself." Young Jae glanced at his watch, sighing half to himself. "It's almost time for my other shift."
"What time is it?" Ji Hoo asked, closing the brown bag.
"It's almost two."
"What?" Ji Hoo got up from the bed, grimacing at the nauseating feeling that overwhelmed him. "I need to go.."
"Let me give you a ride then," murmured Young Jae, standing up as well. "You should go home and rest for a bit."
"I have my motorcycle," began Ji Hoo, before he realized his motorcycle was likely left at the restaurant parking lot. "Nevermind. I would appreciate a ride."
"Sure thing. Let me get ready for my other job first, and we'll head out. You can wait outside," Young Jae suggested.
Ji Hoo exited the small apartment, the fresh air helping the nauseating feeling go away; even if temporarily.
It must have been around 3 p.m. when Ji Hoo finally returned home. He wandered on into the main room, making eye contact with Jan Di who sat patiently on the couch; having awaited his return the entire morning and afternoon. Neither of them, however, smiled. Instead, Ji Hoo looked exhausted, and Jan Di probably looked concerned. But she smiled, regardless of how she really felt in that moment.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine," he replied simply, removing his jacket and hanging it up. "Did you eat?"
This was going nowhere. She decided to cut to the chase, folding her hands in her lap. "Where did you go?"
"I just...went out for a while," he replied. "Did you eat?"
She didn't want to be this way, nor the type of person who nagged others. But her concern wouldn't let the subject drop. "You weren't gone for just a while. It's been longer than that." Her throat felt dry as she pressed for some kind of honest answer. "You were gone all night."
"Jan Di, did you eat?" he repeated.
"Why aren't you answering me?" she asked, frowning now.
He sighed into the palms of his hands. "You haven't answered my question yet. All you're doing is responding to my question, with questions."
She fell quiet for a few seconds. "No, I didn't eat." For a moment, neither of them said anything. "I was waiting for you to come home. I can't eat when I'm worried."
"You shouldn't do this to yourself," murmured Ji Hoo. "...I'll make you something to eat. Or would you rather I pick you something up?"
"I would rather you tell me what happened last night," she replied. When he exhaled in exasperation, she continued, "You're avoiding the questions, Ji Hoo. It's like you're hiding something from me.."
"Am I the only one hiding things?" he replied. "I just went out for a bit. I came home. I'm here, aren't I?"
Jan Di was speechless at his words. His agitated tone was one he hardly ever used with her. Always, he would speak to her sweetly or gently, even when she did screw up. But he was right; who was she to question him when she was the same?
He placed a hand to his forehead, sighing. "Listen, I'm sorry about that.. Just.. Let me make you some lunch."
"Okay," murmured Jan Di, staring blankly at the floor as he strolled into the kitchen; leaving her to her rampaging thoughts.
A/N: Thank you all for your reviews!