( CHAPTER ONE ; ROOM 202 )
Your new living space was on the second floor, in unit #202. The neighboring apartment rooms weren't exactly occupied at the moment, but there would be cleaners now and then, which was good because it was fewer people to attempt conversing with while trying to put up a good front just in case they weren't that nice. Sae-bom was out there, introducing herself to the new neighbors while handing out rice cakes made by the wife of Yi-Hyun's friend.
After setting up a few things in your new apartment, you decided to go and find Sae-bom to tag along with because it was getting boring. You used the stairs and found your friend trying to open a door on the sixth floor. You were just about to speak when the voice of a kid interrupted you, "It won't open." Because of the little kid, Sae-bom noticed you and greeted you with a “hello”, "All the floors below this floor are rental units, and the units on the floors above were general sales. They blocked the door so the tenants couldn't come up."
"You seem to know a lot", Sae-bom said, and you finally decided to take part in their conversation. "Is that even allowed?" Said kid told the both of you how she knows almost everything that happens around the building, and how her classmates call her "dirt poor."
Kids these days are too bad for their good, huh?
"How do they come downstairs?" Sae-bom asked and the kid just told them that they used the elevator. "Are you guys going downstairs?" You responded with a "mhm" and went along with Sae-bom. You probably looked like a lost puppy right now but you didn't care anyway. You weren't listening to the small conversation the other two were having when suddenly your friend stopped in her tracks and went back to the door. Sae-bom suddenly started kicking the door down, which was kind of expected of her.
You decided not to pay mind to the noise your friend was making and tapped the little kid on her shoulder. "Hey, what's your name kid?" The kid turned to you and spoke, "I'm Park Seo-Yoon! I live in unit #502." You gave a soft smile to the kid and introduced yourself too, "I'm (L/n) (Y/n), you can come find me at unit #202 on the second floor."
While the two of you were busy chatting, a final loud thud echoed throughout the hallway, "Now that's much better." Sae-bom had just opened the door that was blocked with stone blocks by kicking it, "Gosh.." you couldn't believe the rich sucker-up people that lived in and up the sixth floor. "Is this okay?" Seo-Yoon asked as she tugged on the shirt of the (h/c) haired girl. "What? Blocking emergency fire exits is against the Fire Service Act, if they say
something about it, we can report them to the police." Sae-bom explained. "I see."
"Okay then, see you later." You gave a small bye-bye wave to the girl while Sae-bom greeted her goodbye, and she finally turned her attention to you. "What do you think the people here are like?" You weren't so sure what to answer but just replied with a shrug. "Based on what happened so far, I don't think they'll like us very much."
Sae-bom rang the doorbell and you were just about to greet the man who came out the door, but he interrupted the two of you before you could even speak and started talking on the phone while motioning you both to stay quiet. After the guy temporarily paused his call, Sae-bom handed him a rice cake and you explained for the both of you. "I'm from unit #202, and she's from unit #501. We moved in today, so we brought some rice cakes."
"Please excuse me," he said and took out his business card. "We're neighbors, so I'll provide legal counseling for free. So come anytime and consult me." The guy went back to his conversation and closed the door on both of you. "Lawyer Kook Hae-Seong, who appears like a comet in hard times." Sae-bom read the card and you let out a small laugh, "A comet huh? Sure sounds reliable."
Now you were standing in front of unit #601. This time, you rang the doorbell. No one answered the door for a while so you told Sae-bom that you were gonna go back to your apartment to fix some things. While you were on your way to the stairs, you passed by a woman wearing a dark red outfit who paid no mind to you at all.
Now back to your apartment room, you took some time to appreciate it and thought about what type of other furniture you should buy. Most of the things you had brought where from an old house you rented before, which of course, was bought with your own money.
Time seemed to have gone by fast because it was already nighttime. You took your favorite book and changed into a more comfortable outfit, it had been a long day and all you wanted to do was lay down in bed to get a nice and peaceful sleep, but the faint banging noises don't seem to want that to happen.
You were thinking about how you could ever repay your best friend. No one would believe you if you said that you received an apartment for a birthday gift anyway. It was just gonna be temporary, and you'll go back to how you used to be like before.
You tried your best to sleep when the noises stopped, allowing you to get a good night's rest, hoping that the next day will go smoother than today.