Raw Line| SVT

46

The Universe realized that having to talk to Jeonghan has been enough trouble for tonight. Therefore, when I arrived at my apartment, I was alone.

I really wasn't expecting not to find at least one of the boys in my living room, with countless papers and files in front of them, solving matters that I didn't even know about. But it felt somehow nice. Even though the silence seemed loud, getting to spend time by myself felt like medicine.

I knew that in the morning, I'd have to start again: think about what Jeonghan told me, figure out whom I need to trust, probably face my sister as well and do the things I've been running away from all this while. But knowing that until then, I could get some sleep, that I could run away just for a bit longer, it made me feel at ease.

My sheets were cold but they still felt familiar, as if I was finally spending time with an old friend. The fresh air coming through the window was caressing the skin of my body in a way I didn't even know I needed. The slight smell of home was tingling my nostrils and for a moment, I felt like the past few months hadn't even happened.

I drift away from the reality and for once in a while, the sleep engulfs me whole– no bad dreams, no overthinking, no waking up in the middle of the night, no fading in and out. Just a deep, dark but warm slumber...

As the light starts creeping in, I feel my mind slowly waking up, as if reaching the surface after being underwater. By the grayish pink hues of the sky, I could tell it was still early. It was morning, I had get up and untangle the mess in my head.

However, what actually motivates me to get out of the warm sheets is not my goal for today, but the delicious smell reaching my nose, alongside a faded sizzling ringing in my ears. Yuri? is the first thing that crosses my mind. It wasn't unusual for a Saturday morning to have Yuri cooking some delicious breakfast that we could enjoy together... well, it used to be normal before moving to Joshua's.

As I leave my room and head towards the kitchen, following the smell, I realize I am starved– I didn't eat anything last night, mostly because I had no food here, but also because that was the last thing I could think about.

I lean against the door frame as I spot my friend having a breakdown in front of the cooker, a frying pan sitting on one of the eyes of the stove. Even though my alone-time didn't last long, deep inside I couldn't really be mad.

"Do you need help?" I ask and the boy flinches so hard he almost knocks the frying pan off the stove.

He turns towards me while leaning against the counter next to the stove, placing a hand over his chest. His eyes land on my figure and he visibly relaxes. I chuckle realizing I gave him a fright even though he most likely knew I was in the other room.

"You scared me," Vernon says. "Wasn't expecting you to be up so early."

I smile, stepping towards the table opposite from the cooker and wondering where he got all this food from. There were a lot of side dishes and snacks placed in bowls and on plates, each of them of a different size. It was definitely way more than what I could eat for a meal, no matter how starved I was.

"I asked Mingyu to prepare some stuff," I hear the boy saying, making me raise my head to look at him. "Figured you'd like some good food."

"Thank you," I say simply, moving my gaze towards the sizzling frying pan. "You're about to set my kitchen on fire, though."

His eyes widen and he instantly turns towards the wannabe-fried eggs on the stove. He moves the pan away from its place and turns off the heat source. By his slumped-in shoulders, I could tell that whatever he was trying to do didn't turn out the way he wanted it to.