»»----> You and Kayden had officially been together for a month now. For most people, this wasn't a big milestone, but for you, it was.

You also were now working at Shinhwa, doing what Inhyuk does. You got to try and recruit new awakened ones, help Jiyoung with things like paperwork, and bug Jisuk.

Some days were laid back, while others were long and included lots of effort. Today was a long and difficult day.

You had lots and lots of paperwork to do, as well as looking through job applications and either accepting them or denying them of an interview.

You came home exhausted, deciding on ordering food instead of making anything.

You called Kayden, because the two of you had a date planned.

"Hey, what's up?" He spoke.

"I'm really tired from work, so I don't think I'll go out tonight, I need to rest." You explained to him.

"Really, Y/N?"

"Yes, really. Today I worked for a long time, and had to practically drive across the whole country to find this one person who didn't give us their email with their application." You told Kayden.

"Yeah, sure. That chairwoman probably gives you hardly any work, since you two are buddies. But whatever, we'll cancel it I guess." He hung up.

"I wasn't expecting such an aggressive answer." You pet your dog. "Maybe he's upset by something, who knows."

Your food eventually came, and so you ate and texted Jiyoung.

Jiyoung

Me: Kayden got super upset that I cancelled. Pretty sure that I'm the one with a job here 🙄

Jiyoung: wow, you work hard, he has no reason to be upset. You even told him beforehand you worked that day and might not be able to make it.
5:56 PM

Me: Exactly. Oh well, you know how he is sometimes.
5:57 PM

You threw away the packaging to your food and watched TV for a while before going to sleep around 9:00 PM.

When you woke up, you checked your phone and realized you had a missed call from Jiwoo from an hour ago, so you called him back.

"Hey, Jiwoo. Why did you call?" You asked once he picked up.

"Kayden was upset, and I was wondering if you knew why, but now I know. Just between you and I, I think you're the right one in the situation." He whispered the last part.

You laughed. "Thanks. Is he still upset?"

"I don't think so. Maybe if you talked to him you could sort of resolve it." He suggested.

"Alright, can I come over now?" You questioned the teen.

"Sure! See you soon." He exclaimed before hanging up the phone.

You quickly got ready, changing out of your pajamas, as well as brushing your hair.

Once you finished, you fed your dog then made your way to Jiwoo's home.

You rang the doorbell, and waited before Jiwoo answered the door.

"Come on in." He smiled, allowing you to walk inside.

You made your way over to the couch, and sat down. "Where's Kayden?" You picked up one of Jiwoo's cats.

"Upstairs." Jiwoo walked over, also picking up one of his cats.

"Okay." You put the cat down. "I'll head up there right now."

You made your way up the stairs and outside of Kayden's room.

You knocked on the door, and Kayden answered.

"Oh, it's you." He said. "Come in, I guess."

"Thanks for being so nice." You walked in, and sat on his bed. "I know you've never worked a day in your life but please be understanding when I tell you I'm tired from work."

He crossed his arms. "We had plans, though. You shouldn't have cancelled last second. Even if you're tired, it's not like we were going to run a marathon."

"It's mainly being socially exhausted, and not wanting to socialize after work. I told you beforehand that I had work that day, so I might cancel, you said it was fine. It's your fault here." You informed him.

He sighed. "Okay, yeah, yeah, I get it. I get upset too often, don't rub it in."

"I'm not." You replied.

"You actually kind of are, I'm not sure if you noticed it yet, but I already know I fucked up."

"Cool, then why are we having this conversation?" You asked.

"I don't know, you're the one who came over." He said. "I would have gotten over it without discussing it."

"I'll keep that in mind." You told Kayden.

"Alright. By the way, I got invited to a party this Saturday if you wanted to go with me. It's only awakened people as well." He changed the topic.

"Sounds good to me, I don't have any plans." You smiled. "I'm going to go downstairs and pet the cats."

You went back downstairs, and walked into the kitchen where Jiwoo was.

"I resolved things with Kayden." You informed him.

"Great!" Jiwoo exclaimed. "I'm just making tea again."

"You make good tea. You should really let me in on your secrets one day."

He laughed. "Thank you! It's really nothing special though."

"You're too humble." You told him.

"Am I? I didn't really think about that." He watched the tea. "I'm going to go sit on the sofa while I wait for it to get hotter."

"Sounds good to me." You looked around kitchen.

Kayden walked over, and put his arms around your waist. He rested his head on your shoulder.

He kissed your neck a few times, and looked at you. You looked over at him as well, and laughed at him.

"You're blushing!" You teased.

He smiled, and took your hand and led you to the couch. You both sat down, and immediately one of Jiwoo's cats sat in your lap.

Kayden put his arm around you, watching the cats play. You pet the cat in your lap, leaning into Kayden.

Jiwoo went to check on the tea, and Kayden caressed your cheek.

"You're really pretty, Y/N." He looked over at you beside him.

You smiled, and leaned in to kiss him. The two of you began kissing, his hand still on your cheek. Jiwoo cleared his throat.

"Sorry to interrupt, but the tea is ready now." He motioned towards the cups on the coffee table.

You grabbed a cup, and drank from it. "Wonderful tea, as always."

Kayden nodded. "I agree. You should open a shop."

Jiwoo smiled. "I'm glad you two like it that much."

You finished your tea, and set the cup back down on the coffee table. You then picked up the cat in your lap, and played around with him.

You held a toy above his nose as he tried to grab it. You eventually let him have the toy.

You let the cat run free with the others, and leaned on Kayden again. "Tea kind of makes me tired."

"Yeah, me too." Kayden yawned.

"It does that sometimes. I don't understand how people drink tea instead of coffee to give them energy." Jiwoo replied.

You nodded. "Yeah, I personally don't drink anything in the morning, but if I did, I don't know if I would drink tea."

"I guess it works for some people, just not us. Maybe we're too old." Kayden said, and then quickly added. "Jiwoo is an exception."

"I'm an old soul, so it fits." Jiwoo smiled, and gathered the cups to take them to the kitchen.

"Kayden's just old altogether. A whole year and some months older than me." You said.

"I'm not old! I'll be old once I turn 30, but that's not for a while."

"You'll still be 30 sooner than me, making you old compared to me." You explained.

"That makes you old compared to Jiwoo, then."

"No, that's not how it works!"

"Then how does it work?"

----

After being at Jiwoo and Kayden's house for a few hours, you drove back home.

Once you got home, your dog was whining. "What do you need?"

You followed your dog, and he showed you a vase of flowers he knocked over. The vase had broken all over the floor.

"I'll buy a new one, but you need to be careful next time." You warned him.

Your dog walked over to his water and food, and you swept up the broken porcelain from the vase.

It was a vase Kartein had given you to help decorate your apartment. You were a little sad about it being broken, but at least it wasn't that sentimental. Although, it was most likely expensive.

You looked online to find a similar vase, but your search was unsuccessful, and so you bought an inexpensive set of pots and vases.

You walked your dog around the neighborhood, occasionally waving to nearby neighbors. You also received your mail, and then headed back.

When you got back, you let your dog run around the backyard, as you cleaned up and trimmed plants.

You often did housework when you were bored or had free time. You didn't have any hobbies at the moment, and your friends all had work and things to do, so you had to make plans in advance if you wanted to hang out with them.

You sometimes enjoyed doing housework, but it felt a little lonely living on your own, especially because you weren't used to it.

Your dog was there to keep you company, but still, human friendships and animal friendships were two very different things.

You didn't mind too much, though. You were fortunate enough to have your own apartment for once.

Still, you felt the sensation of loneliness as you awoke every morning, realizing you were going to be alone all day, and that if anything bad were to happen, no one would know.

After thinking about it for too long, you shook off the thought and continued to trim your plants.