I FOUND THE DIRTY bandage that I applied on my right arm had already changed, mysteriously. I didn't remember changing the bandage yesterday since I was sleeping. Remembering that I had a sleeping over at my place, I quickly sat up on the bed and looked at the clock.

It was 3 in the morning and I heard a sound of plates going against each other. She was probably doing the dishes. But— at 3 a.m? That's suspicious. I stood up and felt a bit dizzy but it didn't take me so long to stable
my own position as I walked out of my room and went straight into the kitchen.

As what I thought, she was doing the dishes while humming a song softly. It was weird that she got so comfortable to be at someone's house who she barely knows and she even willingly did the dishes. Not everyone would act like her if they were in her position.

I crossed my arms, "Are you a psychopath?" I asked and she slightly flinched because she thought that I was still sleeping. "No one does the dishes at 3 a.m." I added. After all, it was a fact.

She turned her head back at me before rubbing her chest using her wet hand. "I didn't see you there." She said and I scoffed. Of course she didn't see me, she was facing her back at me. "Did I wake you up? Sorry." She apologised. I didn't really like when someone is too polite to me. It made everything awkward.

"No." I replied shortly. "But I want to ask you a question," I added, "Were you the one who changed my bandage? It's obviously you because there's no other people in this house." My voice got deepened.

She looked at my freshly wrapped bandage and said, "You knew the answer, so why'd you ask?" I didn't expect her to roast me. Maybe she already knew how I would react and didn't want to seemed as someone who was too nerdy. "You'll probably get mad, I understand that. But your bandage was too dirty, you might get an infection. I can't let that happen. At least not on my watch." She said while washing the last plate in the sink.

Didn't hear of any words let out by me, she stopped the pipe from letting out any water then turned around to look at me. As usual, my face didn't have any emotions showing. If she was smart, she would get used to it and understand me. She sighed, "Look man, I know that you maybe don't lik—"

"Jimin." I randomly said and I could tell that she was confused when I suddenly said it. The face she threw had shown that she had no idea what was Jimin actually is. She didn't know that it was my name. "That's my name." I completed my sentence.

"Oh." She didn't know what to respond but deep inside, I knew she was surprised that I suddenly told her my name. Nodding, she flashed me her smile. For the first time in a while, someone smiled at me. I could feel the minor goosebumps when we made eye contact and she was still smiling at me. I quickly looked away. "I'm actually super glad to know that. At least I won't have to call you random names anymore."

"Tsk," I scoffed then walked away while she was silently smiling like a sheep.

"He finally told me his name." She mumbled.

It was only 6 a.m. and the girl was still sleeping. I think she fell asleep around 4 a.m. and didn't have enough rest. I wondered why she didn't sleep in the room next to mine when I've left the door open. Didn't she get it?

I sighed and let her sleep on the couch while I had to go out to meet someone. He already told me to meet him at the lobby early in the morning because he didn't want anyone to see us together.

Casually walking towards the door after grabbing my keys, I looked back at the girl for a few moment before letting out a soft scoff. Why'd she sleep like a child? The thought crossed my mind.

After going down the escalator, I spotted the guy I was going to meet. He was wearing a thick jacket because it was very cold in the morning, especially in Korea. It was almost winter season. But I've recognised his figure so I knew that it was him.

I walked towards him with my hands tucked into my pockets and cleared my throat to get his attention. Knowing that it was me, he turned around and patted my shoulder. "Yo Jimin." His eyes got smaller as he smiled, his mouth started forming a gummy smile. Someone with dry heart like him wasn't supposed be that cute.

"I'm so happy today," he stated. So that was why he suddenly smiled at me. I could count how many times he had smiled at me. They weren't more than 5 times. "I've got what I wanted, thanks to you." He said with full of satisfaction in his voice as he stopped smiling.

I rolled my eyes. "That's it? Is this why you want to meet me? Such a waste of time. You could just text me." I scoffed while looking at him with my pair of cold eyes that rarely show any emotions like other people's eyes do.

He seemed to get so annoyed with me. Well, everyone does. He glared at me before saying, "People like you are the reason we have middle fingers." He low-key wanted to insult me.

"You're not the one with middle fingers." I replied as he shook his head because he knew that if he continues to debate with me, I'd never let him wins. "So tell me what you wanna say. I still have a plenty of things to do."

Everyone who had worked with me will know me well. Once I said it, I meant it. He straightened his shoulders before clearing his throat. "Jacky." He looked into my eyes.

"Why?" I asked with my voice deepened.

"He wants you to do a task." He informed. "The task he's going to give you is worth for $1.2B." He told me every details I needed to know.

I sighed.

"You said you only accept good offers, right? I think this one is more than good."

"I don't want to take any jobs right now. I want to have a rest." I told him but he seemed to not believing my reason.

He scoffed, "Come on. No one will let this chance slips. This is more than a good offer. Then, you can have a rest."

"Yoongi," I sighed. His eyes got slightly larger when I said his name because I rarely said his name. "You don't understand. I have my own reasons."

He breathed and took a few moment to read me. He knew me well. The ties between me and him was only like a client and a dealer. He had been my client since the past two years. He knew me well, quite well actually.

I saw his face slowly starting to form a sly smirk. He scoffed, "It doesn't sound like you. What's wrong? Are you hiding something? You never rejected Jacky's offer before. What's the matter this time?" He seemed interested to know. I knew I could trust him. But in this world I've got myself involved; in this criminal world, I could never trust anyone. Even my own self.

Shaking my head, I turned away. "Non of your business." I clenched my jaw. "Go now, the guards will start doing their works in 15 minutes. I don't want anyone to see me with you." I said and walked away without biding a goodbye to him. I never did.

"You're back?" The girl who I assumed just woke up from her sleep asked me while squinting her eyes like a toddler. She yawned softly before asking me, "Where did you go? It's still early." She glanced at the clock I hung on the plain white wall of my apartment.

Usually everytime I step into my apartment, the environment would be so quiet and silent; not even a sound would be heard. But this time, I could feel the difference with having someone staying at my house.

Her soft breathing sound, her lavender scent that was strong enough to fill the living room just made the whole environment hit differently. And just now, she just asked me where did I go and it somehow reminded me to the only woman who used to care so much about me. My mom.

She looked at me because I hadn't answered her yet. I sighed with hints of annoyance before throwing the keys onto the table. "I don't have to answer that, and why would I?" I muttered then went to the fridge to take a glass of cold water. She watched me from the couch and sighed.

"It's only 6:35 in the morning and you're already acting so cold." I heard she mumbled. "Do you enjoy being cold? Having no feelings? Do your friends adapt with your personality easily?" She tended and dared to ask me that. I groaned because I hated it when people do everything as they wanted without knowing I hated it. Especially when they communicate with me. I could call myself an introvert for not liking to socialise with people as much as others would like to.

Pissed off, I glared at her with my sharp gaze. I knew she couldn't handle my fierce gaze as she couldn't even maintain an eye contact with me. "Friends?" I almost threw up when I said that word. "Do people still have friends nowadays? I don't think so. They're so toxic," I emphasised and drink my water quickly, my adam apple started to move up and down as the water flowing down my throat. I could sense that she was looking but then quickly looked away before I could catch her.

"So— you don't have friends? Even one?" She asked, her voice softened as she waited for me to answer her. I stared at the wall for a few seconds, thinking of something.

Maybe I do have one. But—

"No." I put the glass in the sink and walked into the living room. "And you. Why are you being so nosy? Just mind your own business." I told her what to do and stop minding my business. I was about to walk into my room before she starting to talk again.

"I just pity you though. Honestly, you don't seem cold at all." She randomly said. I didn't think the word pity suits me. "I can tell that you're actually a good person by heart. That's why you saved me. You could just let me die that day. But you didn't. If you're the type of a person who only minds his own business, you wouldn't save me. Thrice. You saved me thrice. First when I was drunk— then you sent me home. And Yesterday you saved me from getting shot." She stated.

I looked back at her. "That's only two. Don't you know how to count?"

She stayed quiet and it somehow concerned me because I wanted to know what was going on her mind. "That day." She spoke again, "I almost got hit by a motorcycle. I was pretty sure he wanted to hit me. And I was prepared to get hit. But nothing hit me. Someone saved me by shooting him." She looked at me and this time, she was couraged enough to look at me in the eyes.

"And I was pretty sure that it was you right, Jimin?" She said my name. I low-key got a goosebumps while I stared back into her eyes. She sounded so confident talking to me.

The eye contact between us seemed like a competition, neither one of us wanted to break it until I let out a soft scoff. "You're saying that I'm kind just because I saved you?" I crossed my arms. "Little advice for you, from a wise man who has lived in a tough world. In this generation, never judge someone based on their kindnesses. Stop falling too fast. Remember, the devil was once an angel."

"Who says that to be a bad person, it doesn't require someone to be gentle? Even the most gentle person can be a murderer." She seemed to take my words seriously.

"Most people wear mask nowadays to hide their true colours. So, never judge someone just based on a little kindness the present to you. That sounds so stupid." I knew that I sounded a little bit too mean today. I walked away before hearing her mumbled something that somehow moved me.

"But I can feel it."

Author

Jimin was just laying on his bed while scrolling down through the news and headlines that was published a few hours ago about the murder. 7 cases of murder were reported in the same month and everyone had started to freak out.

He scoffed then threw his phone to his side, feeling so lost and blank at the same time. He didn't know what he was feeling or how he was supposed to feel. He felt lost.

Looking up the ceiling, he mumbled something. "Is this what you want, mom?" Then he heaved a sigh before his hand started to reach out for a box of cigarette beside his bed. He took the lighter then lighted up the cigarette so that he could smoke.

Out of the blue, he suddenly smelled something nice coming from his kitchen. He started to think, "Is she cooking in my kitchen?" Then walked out of his room and saw that Heiji was already serving the food on the table. He looked at her then looked at the food. His stomach growled out of control looking at how delicious and mouthwatering the food was. "Did you cook?" He simply asked.

She nodded as a response. "Yes, sorry that I use your ingredients in the fridge. Both of us haven't eaten anything yet and it's already breakfast time. Think that I could at least make something so that you won't have to go out. It's dangerous outside." She said and sat on the dining table.

Jimin couldn't resist the delicious aroma of the food so he sat across her with his cigarette still in his hand. Heiji stared at it and for some reasons, she decided to speak up. "Seems like you're so addicted to smoking, hm?" She asked but in order to avoid from making him angry, she added, "But your lips are pink. Isn't it weird? Most of the people who smoke will have black lips." She said while putting some rice into the plate for Jimin. Judging from his body proportion, Heiji knew that he was the type of a person who eats a lot but wants to take care of his weight. So she just put a normal proportion for him before handing it to him.

He took the plate before saying, "So all this time, you were staring at my lips, hm?" He mocked her.

She scoffed for the first time and Jimin looked at her for a few seconds, observing her actions. "You've started adapting my personality, huh? Thought you said it was mean." He scrunched up his nose to make a disgusted look. He picked up the chopsticks then started eating his meal.

All of the sudden, she giggled. "Maybe if I stay here longer, I'll start being like you. The second version of you, probably."

They had slowly starting to have a proper conversation with each other. This was literally their first conversation that included more than 30 words. Jimin realised that he suddenly became a little bit too friendly to her. He cleared his throat then gulped down the orange juice.

"Stop that, I won't like having a second version of me. That's so irritating."

Jimin had took a few bites of the food and surprisingly, he had to admit that the taste of the food that was cooked by Heiji was marvellous. It fit his taste well and he ate it appetisingly. It tasted just like his mom's cook.

It had been a while since the last time Jimin ate a homemade food and the fact that someone just cooked one for him; he felt so touched and almost tear up. Yes, his tummy felt so blessed by the food and it was so warm and filled with love. He felt the warmth.

Heiji just stayed quiet while eating because she didn't want to bother him eating. But she knew that he loved the food by the way he ate them.

Since he was eating too fast, he suddenly choked on the food and Heiji quickly handed him a glass of water so that he can swallow the food properly. Yet, he kept choking so Heiji patted his back to make him feel better.

Once he stopped, he looked up at her concerned face and for the first time in his life, he saw someone was being so concerned towards him. He could see it in her eyes.

Noticing that Jimin was staring at her, she let him go and took a step back. He cleared his throat then looked away.

"Sorry, just wanna make sure that you won't die choking on my food," she simply stated then sat on her seat back. She glanced at Jimin who didn't say anything then looked back at her food. "Glad that you're fine." She mumbled.

After they had their breakfast, Heiji offered herself to wash the dishes. Jimin was washing the dishes because he think that it was his task since Heiji had cooked for them two. A cooperation is something all of us need in any kind of situation.

"I've already started washing them, can't you see? Just go watch the tv or do something else." He said while placing the plates he had washed into the plate shelf.

She sighed, but instead of going back into the living room, she sat on the counter next to the sink while looking at him washing the dishes. He wore an apron to avoid from getting his clothes wet. He accidentally exposed that he was actually a neat person despite his cold behaviour. She giggled silently so that he won't notice.

"What are you doing here? Go somewhere else, you're distracting me with your heavy breathing." He said without looking back at her.

Heiji raised an eyebrow, surprised by how good his hearing was. "Is it too loud?" She asked then held her breathe for a few seconds. "I used to have asthma when I was a kid. I still have it but not that often anymore." She randomly started telling him about herself.

"I didn't ask." He said while putting some more soap into the sponge container. He was so focused while doing the dishes.

But Heiji still wanted to talk so she didn't mind even if Jimin didn't want to listen to her. "My parents would be so worried everytime I get an asthma attack." She talked about her parents while playfully moved her feet while she was sitting on the counter. Jimin didn't say anything but he was listening to her. "But now, no one's worried about me anymore after my parents are dead."

Jimin stopped doing the dishes and turned around. "Dead?" He asked.

She nodded, "Yeah. My mom died fighting with her brain cancer while my dad—" she stopped and cleared her throat. "I think it's not the right topic to be talked about." She changed her mind and got off from the counter.

If she was talking to anyone else, they might have asked her why she didn't want to talk about her dad. But since it was Park Jimin, he didn't even bother that she didn't want to talk about it. Not because he didn't want to know. He wanted to know. The topic pf her parents suddenly attracted him to talk. But he respected her decision; thinking that it may be because of something she didn't like or didn't want to talk about.

"I'm going to watch the tv now. Sorry," she headed into the living room.

Jimin watched her walking away before mumbling, "She has changed."

He finished doing the dishes then went to Heiji who was watching the television. At the first glance, it looked like she was watching the tv. But when he looked at her once again, he knew that she was zoning out.

"Still day dreaming, eh? I thought only kids do that nowadays." He gibed her before sitting on the dining table that was placed two metres away from the coach she was sitting.

She finally get back to the reality and looked at him. "Jimin," she said his name softly and it made him to look at her. All of his attention was on her.

"What." His voice was flat and toneless.

"You're so cold, fierce and almost all the time moody." She talked casually without thinking of what he will feel when she said something like that to him. To her, Jimin was cold and rarely shows his feelings. So she think that he may not take it seriously and instead, he'll just let out a scoff like he always does. She looked at him. "When did you start being like this? And why is that? I wonder." She went straight to the point, making it easy for him to answer.

After being asked a question that no one had never asked him before, he usually didn't have an answer for that. But he knew how to answer it well. He took a pretty minute before responding to her interesting question.

Breathing, he replied, "I was born this way." He then placed both of his elbows onto the dining table and added, "And nothing can change that."

Then there was a short moment of silence between them. But surprisingly, even after receiving such an answer from Jimin, Heiji seemed to be so brave to protest against him. "No one was born cold. A baby can never."

Jimin found her statement was ridiculous and childish. "I didn't say I started being cold when I was still a baby. What I meant was, I was raised this way. So this is who I am from day one. Why are you so slow? You're pissing me off." He rolled his eyes.

Although Jimin sounded like he was mad, Heiji oddly think that it was normal. She didn't take it as something mean anymore. She started to accept that it was his personality and he didn't actually mean it. She chuckled weakly. "You should watch your mouth, I'm smarter than you think." She starting to adapt Jimin's sarcastic behaviour.

"You know what's the dumbest thing I wished when I was a kid?" Jimin asked out of nowhere, the question he asked almost unrelated to the topic they were talking about.

Interested, Heiji asked, "What is it?"

He looked at her in the eyes. "Wishing I was an adult."

•••

[A/N]

Can you relate?

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