Chapter Text
“you’ve got to be kidding me.”
chaewon squints through the harsh back light of her phone and sees the time: 8:47 am. it’s barely breakfast and she hears loud music and conversation from outside her bedroom window. she pulls the covers over her head and tries to go back to sleep, but the sound of a hammer being pounded on wood disrupts her journey back to dreamland.
it also doesn’t help that her head also feels like someone is drilling it into concrete. for a split second, chaewon wondered why she even let that much alcohol enter her system on a friday night, and why no one stopped her when they knew she was such a lightweight. she tries to remember the events from the night before, and then it hits her: she caught her boyfriend–now ex!--cheating on her with an intern at his office after seeing the messages on his phone. chaewon wasn’t the type to scour through her partners’ phones, but it was supposed to be date night, and she was making pasta and even bought sauvignon blanc. she saw his phone light up from the kitchen counter, but ignored it. when she was getting the cutlery ready, the phone dinged again. she thought it was probably something important from work, and since the two had been very open and comfortable with each other after a year of dating, chaewon thought taking a peek wouldn't hurt.
nothing could have prepared chaewon for what she saw.
chaewon’s (ex) boyfriend, despite being a successful finance analyst, the smart, bookish type, the one who can compute numbers in his head in about 5 seconds or less, apparently was not smart enough to keep his notifications hidden or at least try and cover them up like a serial cheater would. not that she wanted him hiding anything from her, but at that moment, seeing the thirst traps and the disgusting follow-up texts from his notifications was enough for her to hurl his precious PS5 from the fifth floor of his apartment building and leave the crime scene with the wine and pasta in hand.
she doesn’t know what happened after, because she left while he was still in the shower, his apartment thrashed, with a note which she left that said, “for the record, i faked every single orgasm i ever had. Jiwon ❤️ seems to love your *mini* performance though! PS. If you’re looking for your PS5, try looking down from the balcony, asshole.”
love is a lie , chaewon scoffed. she let the remnants of last night’s heartbreak consume her for a little bit more and cried under the covers. she cried until her eyes tired, until the weight of her head felt heavier than a bowling ball. she thought about staying in bed for a few more minutes when a boisterous laugh interrupted her thoughts. the laugh was followed by incomprehensible sentences. the voice came from a woman, probably in her twenties. deep, jovial and friendly. chaewon couldn’t make out the words from this distance, but the woman sounded like she was giving instructions, volume fading in and out every now and then. then, more laughter. chaewon didn’t know why, but this person had a distinct laugh that she found very pleasant. she wondered somberly if she would ever be able to laugh like that again.
chaewon jolted upright and went for the door.
i will definitely be happy again. soon. but first, coffee.
~~~
chaewon distinctly disliked coffee, but even she knew that the best hangover cure was a steaming cup of joe. she poured herself a mug-full and suddenly felt unstoppable, like she was actually happy, at least temporarily. the pounding in her head had subsided but the drilling from nextdoor hadn't. chaewon thought she must have new neighbors, the way she was seeing movers coming in and out of the moving truck parked outside. she tried to catch a glimpse of this neighbor causing all the ruckus, but was unsuccessful as the trees lined beside her porch was covering her line of vision. from behind her, she felt her dog, shiro, bump his head on her ankles, barking audibly.
“looks like the new neighbors woke you up too, huh?” shiro yawned and continued looking up at her.
shiro, a small pomeranian of three years, stood around five pounds with his skinny legs and short, fluffy tail. his fur was a thick white coat. he was nameless when chaewon picked him up from the animal shelter. he was barely five months old at that time and despite being smaller than the other dogs, he had snuggled up to chaewon when she reached for a pet. when chaewon scratched shiro’s head and he started leaving licks and kisses on her face, she knew right then and there that shiro was the one for her. he was the friendliest, clingiest and most loveable thing chaewon has in her life, and despite the fact that he was hyper 24/7 and always tried to steal her food, chaewon wouldn’t replace him with anything in the world, not even for her hound dog-looking ex.
shiro did a big stretch as chaewon picked him up and went to stand idly by the window. as she stared outside, chaewon suddenly noticed a pair of eyes looking up at her from the front lawn. those eyes should not be there, and more importantly, the pair of eyes belonged to a dog standing just mere inches from her flowering shrubs, tail wagging. if this dog takes another step, they could ruin the gardenias she’d been trying to grow.
chaewon step outside and tried to shoo the dog away when it suddenly jumped and barked.
“hey! get away from my garden!” chaewon tried to stay calm as the dog continued to bark and come playfully near the shrubs. her heart sinks when his paw accidentally stepped on the stems of her peonies. chaewon had been meaning to pluck them this week so she could replace the wilted ones from her vase.
“oh my god… please go away! shoo!” chaewon desperately waved the dog away but it continued to jump excitedly and roll around, probably thinking she were out there to play. shiro, who was still in her arms the entire time, started getting restless and started barking at the other dog, his untucked claws boring into chaewon’s skin. that’s when chaewon saw a woman rushing towards the dog. she had thick black hair and the widest shoulders chaewon had ever seen.
“oh my god, loki! what are you doing here…” she put a leash on the dog, whose name was probably loki, as chaewon heard, and carried him with one arm.
“i’m so so sorry! i was inside the house and i didn’t realize loki escaped from his leash.” her big brown eyes complemented well against her pale skin. with their obvious height difference, chaewon had to look up at her from a distance without hurting her neck.
“he almost ruined my flowers…” chaewon started to say, eyes still locked onto the other womans. if she hadn’t forced herself to look towards her garden, chaewon would have been sucked into her creamy brown orbs.
chaewon assessed the garden from the mini scuffle. there was a bit of overturned soil from some of the shrubs, especially from the peonies getting the most damage. the stems had been slightly bent, almost breaking from where they stood.
“oh my gosh, i’m sosososorry! i didn’t mean to–i mean, loki’s still young, he’s very playful and…”
“i was planning on cutting them this week, anyway. your dog has to stay away from my garden, though.” chaewon pointed at the lopsided peonies, almost looking like they had their hands up in the air, waving sideways.
the woman looked so apologetic that she almost looked like it was her fault. she tightened her grip on her dog, loki, who looked so small and well-behaved being cradled by those big arms. meanwhile, shiro had not relaxed one bit after that quick garden mess and had his claws out, clinging to chaewon’s threadbare sweater.
“yes ma’am, i’ll keep a tight leash on him. i’m yunjin, huh yunjin, by the way. we just moved next door, so i guess we’re neighbors now. i’d offer a handshake, but i’m afraid loki would jump out of my grip. ”
now that chaewon was able to look at her face carefully, she realized that the woman was fairly pretty. correctly proportioned face, dreamy brown eyes, and a smile that invited first love, butterflies in your stomach, kind of vibes. she was also tall and definitely bulky over that black long-sleeved sweater that was folded up to her elbows. chaewon could tell she dedicates a good amount of time to her body.
“so that explains all this noise so early in the morning.” chaewon says with an almost sarcastic tone of voice. she didn’t mean it and she was willing to forgive them for the morning ruckus, but the garden mishap and the mini-heart attack she had for her plants had somehow added to the “how-to-piss-your-neighbor-off-on-the-first-day” list. and chaewon was really bad at moving past her first impressions of other people.
“are you always this cranky in the morning?” the neighbor commented cheekily, displaying a playful expression in her eyes. this woman named yunjin was trying to get to chaewon, and it was definitely working. for a first conversation, it surely was getting on her nerves to be read so openly, and on her own premises, at that.
“excuse me?”
“it’s just an observation. i mean, most people are more emotionally charged in the morning.” she said matter-of-factly and continued to smile. she’s pretty, but she was also starting to be annoying as hell. what does she mean by that? was she trying to come off as a saint? was she always in a fantastic mood every morning?
“well. if we’re going all freudian on each other here, then i must say you seem like a real careless people-pleaser who doesn’t give a rat’s ass about taking up other people’s space and boundaries. i’d also offer a handshake, but i’m afraid shiro here might scratch your dog’s face for ruining our morning.” chaewon stared hard at her and slowly backed away, returning to her porch steps.
“nice to meet you, too, i guess! i would suggest some earl grey tea, and maybe tone down on the coffee a bit!” she waved cheerfully, as she exited the lawn and walked towards her home. chaewon turned around and slammed the door shut loud enough for the other woman to hear. shiro jumped out of her grip and barked almost as angrily. he darted toward the kitchen and went out of sight.
“what a weirdo… if shiro doesn’t like her then i don’t have to like her, either.” chaewon muttered to herself and made her way to the bathroom to take a shower.
~~~
chaewon spent her afternoon in the garden, watering and cutting the flowers that were in full bloom. she wore her oldest t-shirt with a print that said “I Wet My Plants” under her pink square overalls and a sun hat to protect her from the sun. she was listening to her beloved taeyeon mix through her headphones as she tended to the pretty flowers in her garden, muting out all the noises of the world.
You make me walk around… you make me cry
Like an idiot, like a child, I just laugh it off
The closer I get, the more scared I get
But this love cannot be stopped
From far away, if I can stare at you
Just for a moment, that is love
When this waiting and yearning gets to you
You can hear it
“can you hear me, chaewon?”
“agh!”
chaewon almost jumped out of her skin when a hand touched her lightly on the arm. it was kazuha, her best friend, and sometimes the main supplier of shiro’s flea medicine. chaewon forgot that she was visiting today.
“whoa! extra jumpy today?” she smiled her colgate-white smile and cocked her head to the side. “coffee overload, again?”
suddenly chaewon remembered what her new neighbor had said during their first encounter this morning. naturally cranky… tone down on the coffee… she had no clue to be assuming things like that, not when they had just literally met.
“my boyfrien- i mean… ex… cheated on me. and i was hungover, okay?” chaewon grit her teeth through the mention of her ex. even the thought of him made the bile climb up her throat. “i decimated his PS5 into a thousand tiny pieces.”
“oh, shit, man.. i’m proud of you.” kazuha pulled chaewon into a half-embrace and patted her head. “do you need me to break his legs for you?”
chaewon giggled, arm still locked around zuha’s waist. “no, but i took one of his expensive bottles of wine, so that evens it out for me, i think. i don’t care.”
kazuha looks at chaewon and wonders if she arrived too late today. she notices the dark bags under her eyes and her puffy face, probably a result of crying all night. she wondered if she had been crying all morning, too. she couldn’t help but lean in and give chaewon a full, bear hug.
“just let me know if you need us to file a restraining order, babygirl.” chaewon snorted and buried her face under kazuha’s embrace, thankful for the assurance. kazuha had always been her rock since high school. when chaewon’s first boyfriend ditched her at prom, zuha was there to rescue her, when she wasn’t even supposed to go in the first place. they ended the night with stomachs full of pizza, sparkling soda and belly laughs.
chaewon and kazuha had been there for each other’s rarest moments throughout adulthood: gushing about their first times, their first heartbreaks, getting into college, graduation… chaewon even wondered if both of them were just teetering from the sidelines, waiting for each other to make the first move. she always brushed the thought away, because to do that means risking her friendship with zuha. she didn’t want to lose her, not even as a friend.
“by the way, i’m just here to drop this medicine off for dear ol’ shiro.” she lifted a paper bag with a cute animal picture and her pet shop name printed across it. Paw and Order.
“thanks, zuha. i could’ve picked them up if you called.” kazuha has been the only pet doctor in town for a few years, and that was the sole contribution to her success. seeing how much people nowadays prefer to have pets instead of children, she took the opportunity to put up her own pet shop and clinic; chaewon and shiro have been the number one customers ever since.
“it’s my pleasure, milady.” she did an elegant bow, to which chaewon returned a curtsy, and giggled. “i’m also here to let you know that i’ll be on a business trip for two weeks. so this is sort of my goodbye.”
“what kind of business trip takes two weeks?” chaewon doesn't really want her to leave, especially with the holidays approaching, she had planned to spend it all with zuha.
“the kind where your father wants you to venture to a new business spot and spend the holidays with him and his new family.” kazuha shrugged and looked at chaewon, hoping she’d stop her from the impending family mess she’s about to go to, but chaewon only scrunched her nose.
“that sucks, man. you’ll miss all the fruitcakes.”
“i know , dude.” zuha pouted. “how are shiro’s fleas, by the way? did the medicine work last time? ”
“sure did, he’s better now. speaking of which, where is he?” chaewon hadn’t seen shiro since the commotion that occurred earlier that morning. the last time she saw him, he was napping by the window of chaewon’s bedroom.
“just call me if you notice anything weird. the medicine should be enough while i’m gone.”
“leaving already?”
“first thing in the morning, bub.” zuha said. “i’ll miss you.”
“shiro and i will miss you, too!” the two of them embraced in another warm hug. when they pulled back, zuha helped chaewon pick up the basket of freshly bloomed flowers she had collected for the day and went back inside the house. chaewon had given her the extra jar of lemon iced tea she’d been saving for a particularly warm day like this.
~~~
it’s been a whole day since chaewon saw shiro. he usually wandered off for hours in the day, but he always returned by dinner time. chaewon was starting to worry as the sky slowly turned pitch black. the lampposts turn on, illuminating the streets. she turned the porch lights on, too, and left shiro’s bowl of food and water by the doorstep, in case he decided to come home late into the night.
~~~~
chaewon wakes up to a high-pitched yowling outside. she’s not exactly sure where it came from, but she knows that sound from anywhere. she bolted down the stairs with her sleeping robe undone and ran towards the lawn. she couldn’t see anything until she heard it again.
“RUFF RUFF!”
soon, she hears a dog howl, and runs towards huh yunjin’s house.
chaewon sees shiro perched on top of yunjin’s porch, his entire back arched defensively, ears twitching backwards. he was barking at loki, who was whimpering loudly below the porch steps and looking terrified. in a panic, chaewon ran to the lawn to pick shiro up.
“shiro! what are you doing here?”
loki continued to bark loudly, trying to go near the door where shiro stood. he barked menacingly at him.
at that exact moment, huh yunjin emerged from the front door, yawning and trying to get sleep out of her eyes.
“whazhapeninhere?” she yawned, looking clearly disoriented from suddenly waking up.
“your dog is trying to attack shiro!” chaewon yelled, trying to go near shiro but stepped back as loki blocked her way.
yunjin popped awake as soon as she heard shiro bark at loki once more.
“whoa, hey!” yunjin ran up to loki and cradled him in her arms like a baby. poor dog was shaking and whimpering.
“are you sure it’s not your dog trying to attack my baby?” she raised his voice. she was standing a few feet away from chaewon and looked her up and down, noticing her loose sleeping robe and looking away.
“poor baby getting scared by a small dog,” she cooed silently, helping loki relax.
chaewon walked up the porch when shiro barked and scratched her arms when she picked him up. he wriggled from her grasp but conceded defeat when chaewon scruffed him by the neck, immobilizing him.
“i don’t know what’s happening here, but please stay away from my dog.” chaewon looked at both yunjin and loki sternly. yunjin noticed the scratches on chaewon’s hands.
“you’re bleeding.” she started.
chaewon looked down on her hands and saw visible red scratch marks. they started from the middle of her arm all the way to the back of your hand.
“i’m fine.” chaewon huffed, trying to walk away as fast as possible. she didn’t know what time it was, but it could easily be past midnight.
“no, wait. please, i have antiseptic soap inside…” she rushed towards the house, when she looked back and saw chaewon frozen on the steps, she beckoned her and disappeared inside. “come on.”
chaewon stood there for a moment and contemplated if she should follow yunjin inside. she barely knew the girl and every encounter she’s had with her always ended in a screaming match or a passive-aggressive exchange. she might even be an ax murderer, for all chaewon knows. a very pretty one, at that.
“shiro, if something happens to me, please know that i love you.” chaewon held him near her face. “third drawer by the sink is where i kept all your aniseed.” she whispered to his ear and walked toward yunjin’s home.
~~~
huh yunjin’s home was, first of all, very clean. it didn’t reek of anything a dog owner normally would smell like. it had the occasional puppy toys around the living room, but much to chaewon’s surprise, it was spotless. it also smelled like sweet rose and laundry detergent. chaewon also discovered that just like her, yunjin lived alone.
yunjin had put loki inside a retractable gate to keep him safe from shiro as chaewon put him down on the floor. yunjin busied herself looking for her first aid kit. chaewon doesn't notice any other pictures on display except her and loki and one with her complete family on the refrigerator door.
her tall frame reappears and she pulls chaewon towards the kitchen sink. chaewon soaked her arms under the water and yunjin hands her the antiseptic soap.
“thanks.” chaewon mumbled. yunjin never left her side and waited until she finished rinsing off, then took her arm and put cream on the scratch marks. she was standing unbelievably close, chaewon could almost see her long eyelashes as she had her head down, concentrating on her self-appointed task.
yunjin also had her other hand holding chaewon tight, as if to make sure chaewon wouldn't run off suddenly.
“i have these at home, you know.” chaewon trained her eyes onto yunjin’s fingers. don’t look at her arm veins, chaewon. don’t look at them. don’t look. don’t.
“oh, gee. why didn’t i think of that?” yunjin mused, to which chaewon rolled her eyes. once again, the magic had worn off.
“do you really have to sound sarcastic all the time?”
“c’mon, lighten up. besides, it happened on my property so i feel partially responsible–even if it was your dog’s fault.” she shrugged.
chaewon scoffed at her accusation. “shiro does not instigate fights. he is very well-mannered, thank you very much.” chaewon pulled her cream-covered arm away from yunjin. just then, she notices shiro bumping his head on yunjin’s legs, panting softly.
“how would you explain the fact that your dog steals loki’s bed from the front porch, then?” she said, crossing her arms, shiro on the other hand, was still headbutting yunjin’s legs.
“oh, he did not.” chaewon retorted. why would he steal someone’s fray-looking bed when he had his charming basket-weave style oval bed at home? it didn’t make sense. “he only sleeps in the beds i buy him.”
yunjin gives chaewon a funny look and fishes her phone from her pocket. “well, you’re in for quite a shock, i guess.”
she shoves the phone to chaewon after tinkering with it for a while. “that’s your dog at 30:56 right?”
chaewon looked closely, a bit disoriented at what yunjin was trying to show her. CCTV recorded footage of her porch outside where her dog, loki, was sitting in his dog bed, playing with his puppy chew ball, when suddenly, she saw shiro enter the frame from the left.
“it doesn’t show anything.” chaewon impatiently looked on, disbelief and denial dripping from her.
“oh, just you wait.”
shiro was moving slowly, watching loki and his toy. a few minutes pass by, the video captures yunjin exiting the front door and loki follows him playfully, at which, the dog bed was obviously vacated, and shiro took the opportunity to lay on it.
yunjin cops the phone away and crosses her arms across her chest. “the court finds the defendant guilty.”
it took chaewon a moment, but she gasped dramatically at the realization. “was he here the entire day yesterday? napping on your dog’s bed?” chaewon looked at shiro with sheer disapproval. “kim shiro, that is not how we behave.”
yunjin stifled a laugh. she was leaning over her stomach and ears red. “relax. i don’t mind at all. i think loki does, though.” yunjin picks up shiro calmly and gives him scratches on his head. shiro thoroughly enjoys it.
“he’s been napping here all day since morning, and seems to enjoy watching his new neighbor work out in the front lawn.”
chaewon grimaced, making sure she showed yunjin her disgust. “ew. weird flex but okay.”
loki whimpers as he looks at the scene from outside his gate. chaewon walks over and gives him a light pat on the head. “loki, blink once if you need help.”
“oh, please.” yunjin giggles. yunjin makes her way to chaewon and returns shiro to her, their arms touching, yunjin’s head closer to chaewon’s momentarily.
“chaewon. i wonder what the weather is like on your side. you wanna wear something warmer than that?” yunjin pointed at chaewon’s loose sleeping gown, her legs showing a little bit of her thigh. a little more movement and the knots would dangerously slip out of her waist and reveal her lingerie.
“pervert.” chaewon instinctively covered her chest and ran back home, arms carrying shiro and the weight of shame for being almost half-naked inside a (pretty much) stranger’s house.