A Disorienting Awakening

BANG! BANG!

A cacophony of banging disturbed the deep sleep I had finally managed to fall into. ‘What in the world is going on?’ With our last activity concluded, there was nothing else left to do. There had been a long stretch of time when I would lie awake until dawn, lost in various thoughts, before finally drifting off. Though it was a meager endeavor, one I couldn’t even put on a business card, I had planned to let my body, which had tirelessly pushed on for seven years, rest comfortably for a few days.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The person beyond the door, however, seemed entirely unconcerned with my grand plans for rest.

“Kwon Yohan! Aren’t you going to get up right now?”

Startled, I snapped awake at those words.

‘…Kwon Yohan?’

My half-closed eyes flew open, and I shot up from the bed. The surroundings were utterly dark. The only light was a thin sliver of sunlight that managed to pierce through a slight gap in the blackout curtains, and even that was a faint, unsatisfying glow.

My room at the dorm — or, more precisely, the room I shared with Maknae — also had blackout curtains. The problem, however, was that I had already moved my belongings out several days prior, and according to my original plan, my body should currently be at my family home.

“What is this?”

The voice that escaped me, though hoarse, was surprisingly high-pitched. A strange sense of alienation washed over me. The spacious bed felt unpleasantly soft.

My eyes, now accustomed to the darkness, scanned the room. It boasted a king-sized bed, a generously sized desk and bookshelf perfect for a single occupant, a built-in wardrobe, and even an attached bathroom. The layout resembled a master bedroom combined with a study in an affluent family’s apartment. It was a profoundly unfamiliar space.

“KWON YOHAN!!!”

The person outside allowed no time for me to process the situation. Clasping my head, which throbbed as if from a hangover, I shuffled with listless steps towards the door and turned the handle. *Click*. With the sound of the lock disengaging, the person who had been relentlessly banging on the door burst inward.

Sharp, upward-slanted eyes without double eyelids, healthy skin that looked well-tanned by the sun, and an impressively muscular physique. Even with just these features, the person would have been recognizable, but what truly caught my eye was their mint-green dyed hair.

“Choi Seung-beom?”

The main vocalist of HEX.

He was the man whose mint-green hair had become so ingrained in my mind because fans kept calling it “mint chocolate” and other such things.

“Are you really going to drop honorifics with me now?” he asked, his brow furrowed deeply.

‘Seriously, this bastard. Even if we’re a flop group, I’m his senior by seven years and older than him. Is he getting annoyed just because I spoke casually?’ A creeping sense of injustice rose within me, yet I understood. It made sense that someone of his caliber wouldn’t know who we were.

Perhaps my gaze, laden with complex emotions, displeased him, for Choi Seung-beom ran a hand through his unkempt hair, ruffling it wildly, and let out a sigh.

“Alright, if you’re not planning to go out like that, change your clothes. We need to be downstairs in five minutes.”

Choi Seung-beom, after kindly switching on the lights, closed the door and left.

The now-illuminated interior was even more spacious than it had appeared in the dim light. Adorned with warm colors and charming decorations, its size didn’t feel overwhelming. The various dolls, both large and small, scattered throughout the room seemed quite fitting for Kwon Yohan, presumably the room’s owner.

‘Ah, Kwon Yohan. Come to think of it, yesterday with Kwon Yohan…’

‘Senior?’

The pretty face that had blankly called out to me, and the incident on the rooftop that had transpired because of him, struck me like a blow to the back of the head. Yes. We had definitely fallen absurdly to the ground, hands clasped tightly together, like autumn leaves out of place on a bright spring day.

‘Why, why me…’

Regardless of the outcome, I had reached out to save him, but instead of gratitude, Kwon Yohan had looked at me with an expression of utter incomprehension. All in that brief moment.

And after that, my memory was blank.

I didn’t think I had drunk that much alcohol, yet the headache was as severe as if I’d drowned myself in a barrel of it the night before. Still, I felt no broken bones or injuries. No cast, no splints; I was standing perfectly fine on two feet.

Whatever had happened, it was a relief not to be injured. With the burden of accumulated debt to address, I couldn’t afford a long rest, so a serious injury would have been truly problematic.

Contrary to my own belief, I might have been completely drunk. In that case, fragmented memories wouldn’t be unusual. However, the memories leading up to the blank spot were remarkably clear.

First, I should probably thank the HEX members for bringing me back to the dorm and letting me sleep, instead of just abandoning me somewhere. They didn’t even seem to know who I was, which made the situation quite embarrassing.

Anyway, they started their promotions the day before yesterday, so they must have a music show schedule today. It was only then, as this thought crossed my mind, that I finally understood why Choi Seung-beom had been looking for Kwon Yohan with such an ominous intensity.

But Kwon Yohan, the person in question, wasn’t here. Did Choi Seung-beom leave without knowing that?

Massaging my stiff neck, I opened the door again. As I shuffled into the living room, trying to hide my embarrassment, Choi Seung-beom stood there, arms crossed, glaring at me.

“Um, Choi Seung-beom… sir? Kwon Yohan isn’t in his room, and I assume you haven’t seen him. Thank you for your hospitality last night. I should probably head back soon, but have you by any chance seen my phone?”

With each word I uttered, Choi Seung-beom’s brow furrowed more intensely. His already sharp features, contorted into such a grimace, now made him look downright menacing. ‘What could possibly be bothering him so much? Did I do something terrible last night?’

Despite my sense of injustice, the person before me was clearly busy and needed to rush to a schedule. There was no time to waste in silence amidst the tense, charged atmosphere. ‘Perhaps I should just go look for it myself right now.’ It was at that moment, as I prepared to turn around, that he reacted.

“Haaah…”

The person let out a deep sigh, then abruptly stood up. With surprising ease, as if I were a mere blanket and not a person, they hoisted me onto their shoulder.

“Hey, wait a minute!”

Choi Seung-beom didn’t even bother to respond, striding purposefully back into the bedroom I had just exited. He opened the wardrobe, grabbed a few random articles of clothing, then unplugged the phone charging on the desk and picked it up, charger and all.

“HEY!”

Annoyance began to bubble up. Even if he was in a bad mood, wasn’t this excessively rude to a senior — or, even assuming he didn’t know I was his senior, to a complete stranger? Though filled with indignation, I couldn’t actively struggle or voice my opinion. If I were to accidentally fall and injure both of us, it would only lead to further trouble for everyone involved.

‘This day is truly cursed… Why is he doing this?’

However, I was not so meek a person as to simply endure unpleasantness from a junior several years my junior. As I muttered, making no effort to quiet my voice, the person, still holding me with one arm while retrieving shoes from the shoe rack, clicked their tongue as if to say they’d heard me.

“This might be some damn insignificant hobby to you, but we’re putting our lives on the line for it. It’s our comeback day, so please, just don’t cause any trouble. Nobody says anything when you cause trouble at other times.”

“What?”

“And don’t talk like that when there are cameras around.”

Snapping these words in a gloomy tone, Choi Seung-beom, laden with bags in his left hand and me still perched on his right shoulder, rode the elevator down. I stared blankly at the numbers dwindling from the 16th floor, pondering his incomprehensible words.

Then, something suddenly entered my field of vision: a slender wrist, emerging from the loose sleeve of pajamas adorned with adorable animal patterns. It was strikingly pale, so much so that the blue veins beneath the skin were unnaturally distinct.

That delicate arm, looking as though it would snap if squeezed too hard, was absolutely not mine.

A chill ran down my spine, as if I had suddenly become the protagonist of a thriller film. Slowly, I raised my head and looked into the mirror. The elevator in this luxury apartment, somehow different from others, featured a sleek mirror on one side, utterly spotless.

And there, before my eyes, was the true nature of the disquiet I had felt since waking. A boy with exceptionally fair skin, whose platinum blonde hair, usually difficult to pull off, suited him perfectly as if he had been born with it, blinked at the same pace as I did.

Soon, the elevator stopped at the second basement level. The moment I stepped into the parking garage, an unfamiliar man with a tearful expression came rushing over.

“You’re late, kids! Get in quickly!”

Choi Seung-beom handed the bags he was carrying to the man, then placed a single pair of shoes on the ground. He then set me, still like a bundle of luggage on his shoulder, down onto them.

“Put them on and get in.”

Despite his indifferent demeanor, the shoes were neatly placed with the ankle openings facing upward, and thanks to their precise positioning, I was able to slip them on easily without stumbling.

“Why is Yohan out in his pajamas?”

A man as well-built as Choi Seung-beom, with a gentle voice, asked. He had a sophisticated, urban impression and silver hair that suited him well. This was Yoon Jihyuk, the leader of HEX.

Choi Seung-beom got into the car first, answering nonchalantly.

“He was sprawled out asleep, so I just carried him.”

“Oh, really?”

Even though I had been late on an important day, Yoon Jihyuk chuckled as if he’d heard a truly amusing story. Feeling somewhat awkward, I, too, got into the car.

‘Is this a dream? Can a dream be this detailed and vivid? But then again, something like this couldn’t possibly happen in reality, could it?’ As I sat there, utterly bewildered, malevolent gazes pierced my skin.

They were the two people in the very back seat: Han Doyoung and Lee Seon, the remaining members of HEX.

“Why aren’t you on your phone for once? You’re the one who never does anything else.”

When Lee Seon asked, Choi Seung-beom, who had been about to pull out an eye mask, answered instead.

“Ah, it’s with my stuff. You can grab it when we arrive.”

Though modern people are inseparable from their phones, I didn’t feel such a desperate need for someone else’s. Instead of looking at the small screen, I turned my head to gaze out the window.

It was a spring day, vibrant with cherry blossoms in full bloom. Even in the still-dark pre-dawn hours, their presence was strikingly clear. Despite nearly a decade of effort crumbling to nothing, the bright weather somehow kept my spirits from sinking entirely.

The weather had been exactly like this when I debuted. As a twenty-year-old, I was filled with a baseless hope that everything would go smoothly, just like the bright day. I wasn’t the type to fuss, so I had kept my mouth shut, but if I had known things would turn out this way, I would have savored it fully, allowing those thrilling memories to remain even more vivid.

As these thoughts drifted through my mind, Choi Seung-beom’s words suddenly echoed.

‘It’s our comeback day, so please, just don’t cause any trouble.’

‘It’s our comeback day, so please, just don’t cause any trouble.’

‘Comeback day… wasn’t that the day before yesterday?’