Chapter Text
The sun was shining brightly through the sheer curtains that covered the large windows, but Taemin didn’t mind. He was used to waking up with the sun, and he loved how it was making its appearance earlier every day as the weather slowly warmed up.
He was debating whether to get up already, or stay in bed a while longer. But then Luna, with her long black fur and her bright green eyes, hopped on the bed and settled between his legs, making the decision for him. He chuckled lightly, loving how his cat liked to cuddle before she would start begging for food.
He tapped on the mattress next to his face to try and make her come closer, and after a few seconds, she was rubbing her face on his cheek. Taemin petted her body and remained mindful of the few knots in her fur—he’d have to brush her today.
He extended his hand and ran it along the sheets of the queen-size bed as he searched for his phone that had to be in there somewhere. He knew he should have put it on the bedside table, but as usual, he had fallen asleep while he was reading something and had lost his phone in the sheets.
A victory grin formed on his face as he found it, but it was directly followed by a grunt when he realized it was almost out of battery. He checked the time—it was still early in the morning, he was in no rush—and plugged it before putting it on the bedside table.
Luna finally meowed and Taemin decided to not make her wait any longer. He got out of bed in a swift move and walked to the kitchen, letting out a yawn. He grabbed the kibble and her bowl—with her paw print painted inside of it—and gave her her breakfast.
While he was at it, he put some fresh water in the coffee machine and pressed the button to heat up the water. He also grabbed the watering can and filled it up. As he opened the glass door to the balcony, a fresh gush of air entered the apartment and made him shiver. It was still chilly in the morning despite the bright sun.
He watered all the plants and inspected them for anything suspicious, and was relieved when he couldn’t find anything sketchy. They were all still thriving, even after five years of inconsistent care—he wasn’t that good with plants, unlike Kibum used to be.
With the glass door closed after him—he didn’t want Luna to jump off the balcony—he went back into the kitchen to make himself a well-deserved cup of coffee. As he brought the hot liquid to his mouth, his gaze wandered into the well-lit room, and like every morning, it landed on that horrendous painting that hung proudly on the main wall of the room.
Even after almost ten years of looking at it every day, he wasn’t sure what it represented. There were a lot of bright colors on the canvas, but there wasn’t any definite shape, and some of the colors clashed weirdly and hurt his eyes if he stared too long.
That morning, he focused on the bottom right corner, where the mix of paint had turned into a muddy color that should have had no business in a kitchen, but it was redeemed because there was Kibum’s name written in gold letters over it, along with the date he painted that masterpiece—his words, not Taemin’s.
But Taemin never had the heart to tell his late boyfriend that he hated that painting, and Kibum seemed to like it very much. So much so that he decided to hang it on the wall of the most prestigious room of their apartment for everybody to see.
When Taemin had confessed that he didn’t understand the meaning of that painting, Kibum had chuckled and told him that he’d get it with time—but ten years later, he still didn’t. And Kibum wasn’t there anymore to give him any clues, he realized with a sigh, like he did every morning as he drank his cup of coffee in front of the painting.
Sometimes, he wished Kibum had left him a clue before he passed away. But other days, like this one in early Spring, he didn’t mind that much. This painting was going to remain an enigma, just like Kibum was, and somehow it made sense to Taemin.
He took the last sip of his coffee and immediately started a new cup. In the meantime, he took a quick shower and put on some casual clothes—that was a perk of working from home. He only needed to look put together from the waist up, and since he had started that job his sweatpants collection had become huge—he even had some fancy ones.
By the time he started drinking his second cup of coffee, it was time for him to start working, and he decided to not waste any more minutes. He went into his home office—Kibum’s old craft room—and made his way through the clutter. His toe hit the foot of the desk, making him wince, and he promised himself once again that he’d finally clean up the room during the weekend—he knew he wouldn’t.
He had a meeting starting soon and he just had enough time to check the latest report on that client’s campaign before he would have to lead the status call. As always as his camera turned on, he put on a smile as bright as the sun outside and greeted the other people in the meeting.
Unlike most of his co-workers, he liked having meetings on Fridays, but for a reason he’d never admit to them directly. What he liked about those was the fact that he got to interact with people, and it eased the transition into the weekend, when he usually went out, whether to buy groceries or grab a drink with his friends.
He jumped in and out of calls for the whole morning until he felt his stomach growl and he checked the time. Noon. He pursed his lips together as he glanced at the ceiling, wondering what he should eat. He didn’t feel like cooking—he didn’t have enough time anyway. He promptly got up from his chair and put his shoes on, looking forward to getting some fresh air in the process.
The walk to the corner store was quick, and the clerk greeted him as usual when he entered the small shop. Taemin greeted him back as he laid a mix of healthy snacks and junk food at checkout, hoping the slight guilt on his face wasn’t too noticeable.
He walked back towards his small apartment building, making a small detour to his mailbox, and sighing as he glanced at the different envelopes he had received. He had only gotten bills to pay.
He jogged back towards his building, his stomach rumbling with hunger. As he was about to open the front door, it opened right before him, almost making him lose his balance.
“Whoah, careful here,” a man said quickly and grabbed his arms so he wouldn’t fall.
Taemin chuckled as soon as he regained his balance and looked up at the man. A frown appeared on his face as he didn’t recognize him—he wasn’t living here. He glanced to his right and saw the small moving truck, and things started to make sense.
“It’s okay,” Taemin mumbled and instinctively brushed his sweatpants to remove some inexistent dust. “Are you moving in here?” he added with more assurance and a friendly smile— always be nice to people that might potentially make your life a living hell, he could still hear Kibum say.
“Yes!” the man answered in the same tone. “Apartment 2B, on the—”
“—second floor on the right,” Taemin finished his sentence with a nod. “Well, we’re going to be neighbors, then. I live in the other unit on this floor. It’s nice to meet you, I’m Lee Taemin,” he said and extended his right hand.
The man shook it and Taemin noticed it was slightly sweaty, probably because of the workout from bringing all his moving boxes up to the second floor without an elevator. Some of his brown hair was also stuck on his forehead, and Taemin didn’t look away when the man brushed them away after retrieving his hand.
“And I’m Choi Minho. It’s nice to meet you too,” the man said gently. “Did you know the people that lived here before me? Everything is pretty old-fashioned in the unit.”
“Oh, yes, Mr. Park and his wife. Mr. Park moved into a hospice after his wife passed away, about a year ago,” Taemin explained thoughtfully. “They were nice neighbors,” he added, hoping Minho would be too. He had gotten used to the quietness of the second floor.
“I’m sure we’ll get along well too,” Minho said with a chuckle and started walking back to the small truck.
“I hope so,” Taemin mumbled and watched him unload something from the truck. “Do you need any help? I can bring a box upstairs on my way,” he added and walked closer to him again.
“Oh, thanks a lot, Taemin. That would actually help. I’m all alone for this.”
Taemin chuckled and laid his grocery bag on top of the box Minho was carrying and took it from his hands. He puffed as he realized how heavy it was, and regretted his offer for a few seconds.
But he couldn’t back down now, so he made his way back to the front door and up the stairs until he reached the second floor, and put the box down on top of the small pile that was slowly taking form next to Minho’s door.
He walked back into his apartment and checked the clock on the wall only to realize that he didn’t have a lot of time left. He quickly sat at the counter and ate his lunch, then played a bit with Luna before getting back to work.