Hyun took his time getting out of the shower, wiping his hair with a soft towel, and quietly opened the door of the room. Jensen was still asleep when he left to wash, so he didn't dare to wake him. When he entered the bedroom, however, he immediately froze. A towel dangling from his head fell on his shoulder.

Jensen was sitting on the bed, hunched over, looking as if he had blown about three cans of soju the day before. His black hair was carelessly mussed in all directions, like straw, and one side of his face was bouffant with the imprint of a fine braided bracelet hanging from his wrist. His eyes were sleepily clouded.

He wobbled strangely, it seemed as if he would have fallen to the floor just a little more. Hyun put the towel away on the bed and, stopping beside his brother, said:

"You look like you've come back from a drinking binge. I'll get some water."

Jensen, yawning sluggishly, turned his sleepy reddened face toward the slammed door and wheezed out:

"Mm."

Gratefully accepting a glass of fresh water, he drained it halfway and sighed loudly. Hyun, meanwhile, began to make his bed, playing the soft, quiet melody he listened to every morning in the room. Jensen, feeling everything inside blurry and his head gradually turning cloudy, slapped himself lightly on the cheek, finally waking up. He took a few more sips and asked:

"How are your bruises?"

Hyun turned to his brother and lifted up his pajamas. The place where the impressive greenish bruises had sprawled a couple of days ago looked redder, but much healthier.

"It's okay," Hyun replied. There was a soft smile on his lips. "Thank you."

Jensen brushed it off.

"If anything happens, always let me know," he said in a firm, confident tone, placing the cup on the edge of the table with a thud. Hyun nodded and turned away, continuing to make the bed.

The bear face on Jensen's pajamas wrinkled angrily from the folds that had formed.

"Where's Du San?" he asked, rising from the bed and doing a light warm-up.

"Mom got called into work for a while. Said there was some mess with the paperwork. She'll be back soon."

"Mm, I see."

Jensen opened the window a couple of centimeters and headed for the bathroom. Hyun, when he was done, tossed him afterwards:

"I'll make your bed."

"Thank you."

He went to the sink, turned on the faucet, and splashed cool water on his face. The mirror reflected a sluggish and slightly swollen, disgruntled face. Stretching his cheeks apart, he massaged his neck in sharp motions and rinsed again. His gaze fell on a glass of multicolored brushes.

A slight transparent smile appeared on his lips.

It was as if there had always been three of them in that cup.

He picked up some mint toothpaste, squeezed out a few drops, and began brushing his teeth.

A white lightbulb rattled softly over his head.

When he entered the kitchen, where the dim rays of the winter sun were streaming in through the window, he scrambled to open the refrigerator door and ducked his head in, trying to find breakfast. Hyun, getting close to his brother, slapped him on the back. Jensen flinched, not hearing his quiet footsteps, and grunted in an aged manner.

"What are we having for breakfast today?"

"Mom made pancakes with green onions. In that bowl," he pointed to the highest shelf, where there was a small saucer covered with a lid. Jensen reached out and, closing the refrigerator, placed breakfast on the table.

When he opened the lid, they immediately pounced greedily on the food. Hyun rushed to the cabinet, pulling out a sweet sauce and dipping a crispy pancake in it.

Jensen straightened up, licking his fingers coated in sweet fat. His gaze happened to stumble upon a calendar.

Friday.

He stared thoughtfully at the refrigerator.

"Do we have kimchi?"

"Of course," Hyun hummed, devouring his fourth pancake and washing it down with a glass of water. "If Mom lives in this apartment, there's bound to be kimchi in it. I wouldn't be surprised if I wake up one morning and there's a huge basin full of kimchi under my nose."

Jensen laughed softly.

As he leaned against the stove, he took out some toast and, pouring oil on it, carefully placed it in the frying pan. The oil hissed with a crackle on the fire.

"What are you going to do?" asked Hyun with interest. He wiped his oily mouth with a towel and stared at the class chat room where their head teacher had just dropped off his literature homework.

Jensen pulled out cream cheese, cilantro, and kimchi packed in a container from the refrigerator.

"Toast with kimchi."

After washing the cilantro and chopping it on a board, he mixed it with two spoonfuls of cheese and fragrant, spicy kimchi.

"I'll be back a little later today," Jensen tossed as he flipped the toast flipping in the frying pan.

Hyun heard that, and stepped away from the phone with an amazed eyebrow raised.

"Going somewhere after school?"

"There's a job to do. I'll be back before ten, don't worry."

Hyun rolled his eyes.

"Like I care about a boogeyman like you."

Suddenly the expression on his face became more frowning. He moved closer to the phone, almost touching it with the tip of his nose. Jensen, noticing this, smirked slightly.

"What the fuck is that on your face?!" he exclaimed, pointing his spatula at his brother.

He twitched, immediately starting to finger his own face. His eyes grew wide with fear and his breathing became more labored.

"What is it!" he howled impatiently, trying to grope his face for what caused his brother to have such a reaction.

Jensen, pressing his thigh against the tabletop, smirked enigmatically and gave out:

"My look?"

Hyun, hearing this, pulled his hands away from his face and, blushing, threw chopsticks at the guy.

"Ew! And that's the kind of thing you conquer girls with?" his lips pressed together mockingly.

Jensen laughed.

"Why?"

"It's cheesy," Hyun waved him off and picked up his phone again.

"Come on, I just wanted to cheer you up," he nodded, turning back and lifting some toast to see if it was toasted. The soft ruddy crust caused a wave of appetite in his stomach, but he immediately smothered it with the last pancake on his plate.

Hyun tilted his head. His pouty lips folded into a shy smile. He stifled a laugh and began flipping through a ribbon of messages.

There was the sound of a key. The door to the apartment opened ajar, and Du San immediately flew in. Shaking the snow off her head, she quickly slipped out of her boots, hanging her warm coat on the hook on the way. The woman's flushed face appeared in the kitchen. When she saw the schoolchildren, she smiled pleasantly.

"You awake already?"

"Yeah. What's up with the paperwork?"

"It's fine," Du San hastily pulled a barrette out of her hair and brushed it through. She stopped by the table and continued softly. "Just for the weekend, I'll have to do some extra work. You can manage on your own here, right?"

Hyun looked at her and pursed his lips and seemed to want to say something, but Jensen immediately interrupted him:

"Sure. It'll be fine."

The woman smiled happily. Looking at the heart-shaped wooden clock hanging near the calendar, she waved her hands frantically.

"Oh, my favorite drama is starting now! How just in time I made it, eh!" she gently scratched her son's head, stretched her dry lips in a smile once more, and hurriedly headed into the living room. After a couple of minutes the sounds of a romantic comedy came from there.

Jensen patted his brother on the shoulder and patted the dark hedgehog on the back of his head.

Returning to cooking, he placed the toast on a plate and smeared it thickly with cream cheese and kimchi sauce. Taking out an empty container, he filled it with tonight's dinner and put it in the refrigerator, waiting for it to cool.

Pouring himself a juice, Jensen went into the living room and, with a tired sigh, flopped down on the couch next to Du San, who, without looking away, with wild interest was looking at the actors on the screen. She caught movement from the side, she looked at Jensen tenderly and lightly squeezed his shoulder.

The day was beginning just fine.