PAINKILLER | haechan

01 | morning call

01. morning call

"If you had a pet dragon, what would you name it?"

When I looked back on the screen of my laptop, my friend, Jisung, and I had a short staring contest before bursting out laughing. Holding his hand in front of him as he let out a youthful laugh.

For as long as I could remember, the situation before me was completely normal. I exhaled a breath, placing a few strands of my black hair behind my ear. "It's ten in the morning. How high are you right now?"

He fixed his baseball cap, one that we bought together for his birthday. Looking at him now, I realized his bangs were longer which almost reached down his eyes.

"Hey, I'm serious. Dragons are powerful enough to rule the world." Jisung retorted, eyes full of wonder at the subject of our morning conversation.

I shrugged. "I prefer dinosaurs."

"Dinosaurs are extinct, silly goose." He said, leaning closer to the screen. His nose scrunched slightly, one of his habits since middle school. I cringed at the silly nickname. "Meanwhile, dragons are legends. I'm a legend."

I raised a brow, seeing him wear a proud smile from the screen. "Are you saying you're a dragon?"

"I mean, I could be if I believe in myself, right?" He chuckled. "Anyway, how've you been? Found a job yet?"

A long-suffering sigh left my lips. Reminiscing on my failed attempts on finding a summer job yesterday, I shook my head. "Most of the shops near my apartment aren't really hiring this summer while others are just sketchy, you know? Or maybe I just suck at talking to people. You know me, little chick."

This time, Jisung sighed. When he raised his gaze and looked straight from the screen like his eyes were communicating with mine.

"You're mom's worried." He said, giving me a concerned look. "you know you can always come back. We can spend the summer together like we used to."

I really hated it whenever the atmosphere dropped and the mood became gloomy. And the way Jisung looked at me with a frown on his face only made it worse. "I can't. I just can't. Not yet, Jisung." I breathed, looking down on my hands. "But trust me on this, one day, everything will be fine. I'll be okay."

He leaned back on the headboard of his bed. "Fine."

"What's with the frown?" I asked, tilting my head slightly out of curiosity.

"Nothing. Maybe I'm just not used to spending my summer without you." The corners of his lips curved to a small smile like a little kid. "Good luck on finding a job. Oh, and worm," he said, "stay out of trouble."

I sneaked an eye roll at his words. "You got it, kid."

"You do know we're the same age, right?"

"It's a baby goat for fuck's sake—"

hope this won't flop 🤞🏻