Work Text:
Kihyun sighed as he dropped the stack of mail onto his dining table. He eyed the various sizes of envelopes, knowing that most of them weren’t for him, but he wasn’t exactly going to stand out in the cold to sort through the mail (and apparently, the mailman felt the same way).
With lazy movements, he pushed aside the bigger parcels, knowing they weren’t for him. He had been doing this ever since he had moved in, a few months earlier. He knew the ins and outs of his upstairs neighbour’s mail - well, in a way. He had opened entirely too many packages that hadn’t been his in the earlier days and had come across some interesting things. His neighbour was really into incense and sci-fi novels, two things Kihyun didn’t know a whole lot about, but wanted to. Well, not really the incense - don’t you just light it and call it a day? - but he did want to know what all his upstairs neighbour got up to.
He knew his name - Hyungwon - and that he was a book editor for a small publishing company. He was a year younger than Kihyun and had been living in the house ever since he graduated from college. They were on friendly terms: Kihyun would invite him for dinner on the rare days he cooked a little too much and they were past the point of small talk when they’d run into each other in the basement while doing laundry. However, he had never been inside Hyungwon’s apartment, and with every wrongly sorted parcel, he was getting more intrigued.
That morning, one of the parcels must’ve ripped during transit, and as Kihyun was scooping them into his hands to go deliver on his neighbour’s doorstep, a thin book slid out of its packaging and onto Kihyun’s wooden table.
Kihyun shifted the other packages into one arm to pick up the stray book. It was a hardcover book, decorated with ornate gold carvings. With a curious frown, he flipped the book around, eyes widening when he read that it was a book about witchcraft. He rolled his eyes at the spelling of ‘magic’ with the letter k at the end but was intrigued nevertheless.
After checking that he looked somewhat presentable in the mirror by his front door (it was a Saturday afternoon, he didn’t have to look completely put-together), he exited into the small hallway between his door and the front door to the house. He passed the door to the basement, made his way up the stairs that led to his neighbour’s house and raised his hand to the wood and knocked.
Just when he was going to leave the packages in a pile beside the door and return downstairs, it opened ever so slightly, and out popped his neighbour’s head, silver hair tousled on top of his head and round glasses hiding tired eyes.
“Hey, Hyungwon,” Kihyun greeted him with an easy smile. “I’ve got your mail.”
“When will the mailman learn,” Hyungwon joked, opening the door further to take the parcels from Kihyun. “Thanks.”
“No worries.” Kihyun handed him the book next. “One of the envelopes got torn so this fell out.”
When Hyungwon took it from him and looked at the cover, Kihyun didn’t miss the way his eyes widened, in what almost appeared to be… Apprehension? Fear?
“Oh. Thank you,” he said again, but didn’t meet Kihyun’s eyes. He was about to retreat back into his apartment when Kihyun stopped him, reaching a hand out towards him.
“You know,” Kihyun said, “out of all the mail of yours I’ve seen accidentally, that one is probably the most intriguing.”
Hyungwon chuckled, but Kihyun could tell he was nervous. Anyone could have. “Ah, is that so?”
“Hmm,” Kihyun nodded. He blew a strand of light brown hair away from his face. “I actually want to know what you’re going to do with that.”
Hyungwon’s eyes finally met Kihyun’s again. “What?”
Kihyun shrugged, slid his hands into the front pockets of his blue sweatpants. “I’m serious. I don’t know much about this witchcraft stuff, but I’m guessing you do.”
“What makes you think that?” Hyungwon asked, another nervous chuckle escaping him.
“Well, all your mail, mostly,” Kihyun replied, an amused smile tugging at his lips when Hyungwon’s face tinted pink. He tilted his head to the side, ever so slightly, and shrugged again. “I’d like to see what you get up to.”
Admittedly, Kihyun was being a little… Forward, but it wasn’t like him to shy away from how he felt or from speaking in a way that might be considered blunt. He was genuinely interested in Hyungwon’s life and that moment felt like the perfect opportunity to learn more.
“Well…” Hyungwon took a quick glance inside his apartment, then pushed the door open wider. “I guess I can show you.”
Excitement bubbling in his stomach, Kihyun stepped into the apartment, not bothering to take off his purple slippers. They never left his house anyways, so they were clean.
The first thing Kihyun noticed was the abundance of plants. The dining table had one area clear and the rest of it was taken up by two clay flower pots, green plants spilling over the sides. On the kitchen windowsill were succulents, cacti with blooming flowers and jade plants reaching high towards the sunlight. There were even plants hanging from the ceiling in various corners of the living room.
Next was the smell. It smelt like… Was that cinnamon? And something a little spicy, perhaps turmeric. An interesting combination, Kihyun thought, for an interesting apartment.
Hyungwon picked up one of the plants from the dining table and put it down on a kitchen counter before gesturing for Kihyun to sit. As he did, he noticed a stack of books that had been hidden by the plant. They all had similar covers as the one he had just given Hyungwon, and he was beginning to get a little giddy with excitement.
He always liked these sorts of things. Witchcraft and magic, that was. He had tried and tried when he was a kid to make it work for him but it never did, and as he got older he gave up trying. He just wasn’t one of the gifted ones, something he would probably forever be slightly bitter about.
“I don’t really know where to start,” Hyungwon admitted, running a hand through his hair, which just flopped in front of his face again. “I’ve never really shared this with anyone.”
Kihyun frowned. He was sure Hyungwon had friends that came over occasionally - he had seen them himself. “Really?”
Hyungwon hummed, then peered up at Kihyun’s face through his glasses. “Well, I guess I’ve never shared this with people who aren’t- well, I don’t know if you- You know.”
“I’m not.” Kihyun shrugged before leaning forward on his elbows, giving Hyungwon half a smile. “I’ve always been interested, though. My friend Hoseok is a witch, too, but he doesn’t really do much about it. Just grows fruits in his backyard all year long.”
At that, Hyungwon laughed, hand coming up to cover his mouth instinctively. Kihyun didn’t really want him to muffle the sound. “I guess that’s useful in its own way.”
“I guess. What do you do, then? Why all the plants?”
“Um…” Hyungwon looked around, pursing his lips as he thought about how to answer that. “I just like them, honestly. My mum had lots of plants around the house when I was growing up - she still does, actually - and it just stuck with me.” He thought about his response for a moment longer before adding, in a slightly uncertain voice, “Plus, they’re useful for all the random concoctions I make.”
Kihyun nodded, eyeing the shelf full of differently shaped glass vials behind Hyungwon. “What do you do with these ‘concoctions’?”
“Sell them, mostly. I don’t really make many for myself, don’t see the need.” He shrugged, leaning back in his chair ever so slightly. Kihyun was glad to note that he didn’t seem quite as nervous anymore. “My friend Changkyun and I have a business of sorts.”
Kihyun raised his eyebrows. “That’s actually pretty cool,” he commented, and he meant it. He gave lectures and graded papers for a living. Running a business was far more interesting.
Hyungwon hummed, nodded, then smiled. “It’s not really all that. His friend owns a little store, and the two of us stop by from time to time to, like… Talk to people about their problems and such.”
“I guess… Kind of like a doctor?” Kihyun asked, then his eyes widened. He smacked his hands down on the table gently. “A witch doctor!”
Hyungwon stared at him for a moment before bursting out laughing. He laughed for a solid minute, clutching his stomach, and Kihyun couldn’t help but join in.
“I’m not wrong though, am I?” Kihyun asked through wheezes when their laughter began to diminish. “You talk to them, and then whip up some magic potion that’ll help them. Right?”
“You’re right,” Hyungwon answered around a laugh. “I guess we are witch doctors.”
Kihyun beamed. Hyungwon was growing more and more comfortable, and Kihyun was thrilled to see this new side of him. The carefree, laughing side. He kinda wanted to see more of it. “Is Changkyun the one with the really deep dimples?”
Hyungwon shook his head. “Nah, that’s Jooheon. He owns the store. Changkyun’s the one with the black hair and the nose.”
“The nose?” Kihyun asked but a moment later he remembered. “Oh yeah! I see. What does Jooheon sell, apart from your prescriptions?”
“They’re not prescriptions!” Hyungwon exclaimed but the smile was ever-present. “He just sells general supplies, like vials and candles and stuff. It’s not a very big place, kind of a hole in the wall.”
Kihyun hummed. “Well, it’s still something.” He felt like he wanted to know more, but he was quickly running out of questions. Taking a look around the house, he noted a few books in neat piles here and there, then all the books in his shelves by the door. “You like to read, I see.”
“They all bring something new to the table,” Hyungwon explained, following Kihyun in looking around. “I always find something new or interesting in each one.”
They sat there in silence for another moment or two, then Kihyun looked over at his neighbour again. “Is there anything you can show me?”
“Show you?” Hyungwon asked, brows furrowing in confusion. Cute.
Kihyun nodded. “Yeah, like… Magic stuff.” He made a vague hand gesture but figured the other man knew what he meant.
Hyungwon’s confused expression turned into an amused one and, biting back a smile, he shrugged. “Yeah, I guess I can show you a trick or two.”
When Kihyun finally made it back to his apartment, the sun was well on its way to the horizon but he didn’t mind that he spent his entire day up there. Rather, he thought it was a good way to spend his day off, and he was thrilled at the idea of learning more about - and from - his mysterious upstairs neighbour.