Hongbin peeked an eye open as he heard the bedroom door swish shut. The readout on the wall overlay announced that it was 4 in the morning, and that was too ungodly a time to be awake. He tucked himself back under the covers and shifted onto his side facing away from the middle as he felt the bed dip under the added weight of his roommate. All the two best friends had been able to afford when moving to the city had been a cramped little one bedroom space. Originally they’d had an agreement that they’d shift on a monthly basis, one could take the bed while the other made due with the pull out couch.

That had lasted for about 3 months until one unfortunate night doing a bar crawl had led to them passing out together on the bed. It was a little hazy but they were pretty sure that whoever had been carrying the other had just checked out the moment they’d gotten to the mattress. After that though, they just couldn’t find a reason not to continue sharing the bed. It was more comfortable for both of them as the pull out had the odd spring that enjoyed jabbing into an unsuspecting back in the middle of the night. Their place was too small to bring someone back to anyhow, so it wasn’t like they were going to be needing the privacy.

A soft snuffling came from over his shoulder and he was pretty sure Ravi was seconds away from conking out. A firm arm wrapped around his waist and he could feel his roommate’s body snuggle up against his back, Ravi’s soft blue hair tickled against the back of his neck. That had taken a little more getting used to. His friend had claimed that he needed to hug something to sleep and the bed didn’t have enough room for the two of them and a pillow for him to cling to so most nights it ended up that Hongbin became the stand in stuffed animal. Not that he particularly minded. They’d been close since they were kids, when Ravi still went by Wonsik and it hadn’t been weird for them to be found huddled under the covers talking about anything that came to mind. Mostly it had been about how they were going to make it to the city and strike it big. Ravi with his rapping and Hongbin with his photography.

Their dingy apartment begged to differ with their dreams.

Maybe the dreams had just faded into realities. Reality being that Hongbin took most of his photos working at the licensing center. Snapping angry looking people for their driver’s licenses and official IDs, and using the weekends to try and create his first pictorial of the faceless city. Reality being that Ravi worked two part time jobs, one at a convenience store and the other serving as a barista at a local cafe during the day only to spend most nights haunting underground rap battles and waiting for his chance.

Reality was that they both had to get up in 3 hours and Ravi would spend the 2 hour break he got between jobs curled up in the back room of his 1st part time job snoring away. Reality was that Hongbin had accidentally cracked the casing for one of his zoom lenses by being an idiot and hanging off the side of a building with one arm to snap a shot of the stream of heads flooding out of a subway exit. He definitely didn’t have the money to replace it right away, so that would be another couple of months to put his project on hold.

Some nights he envied Ravi’s ability to just drop off the side of the living like a stone into water. It would be nice to not worry sometimes and just sleep, but night time was when he got most of his thinking done. He still had some extra funds from his last birthday, but that was really better saved for actual emergencies. Maybe he could get lucky and find a freelance job, it was getting on toward Christmas time and the department stores would be looking for a photographer to do Holiday shots.

The forehead nestled against his back nuzzled at the base of his neck and Hongbin had to bite back a giggle. Who told this idiot his hair could be so fluffy? It tickled. “Alright, alright, I’m going to sleep.” He spoke to no one at all, Ravi was long gone into dreamland already. Telling himself to turn off his brain, Hongbin glared once at the wall read out that had changed to read 4:35 am before shutting his eyes. How dare time move so fast. Only 2 and a half hours before he had to try and struggle out of bed with a barnacle attached to him.

It felt like as soon as he shut his eyes the morning alarm started blaring. The only telling sign of the passage of time was the sunlight filtering in softly through the slats of their blinds and the virtual clock projected on the wall announcing it was 7 in the morning. Instinctually, Ravi curled closer to Hongbin to try and block out the shrill alarm, burying his cheek against Hongbin’s firm back and pulling him closer with his arm. “Dunwanna…” he mumbled into the fabric of Hongbin’s tanktop even as the other man struggled to try and free himself from the twist of sheets and Ravi’s limbs.

A familiar battle for one who’d seen the many stages of ‘waking Kim Wonsik’ before, Hongbin systematically disentangled from his friend. First the arm around around his waist, he had to peel it back by the fingers. By the time he’d completed that, Ravi had counteracted with hooking his chin over Hongbin’s shoulder. It was like some strange ballet, as Hongbin had to simultaneously keep hold of Ravi’s hand (or else it would re-attach itself to him) and also try and squirm and shrug out of the lock he was in with the chin. Undignified and ungraceful, he eventually shimmied his way out of the bed and retaliated by throwing his pillow onto his friend’s head before waving his hand over the wall display projector to shut off the alarm.

Soft snores drifted to him from the bed and he couldn’t help but smirk seeing as Ravi had claimed his pillow as his new hugging object and was already blissfully drifting out on sleep. Per their standard operating procedures, he’d have to wake him again after he’d finished showering in their one bathroom.

Inching his way around the bed (there wasn’t much space in the room for that even let alone walking space) he slid open the closet door to his side of their shared storage. By the help of hanging organizers, even the small area he was allotted could fit his wardrobe, and he pulled out a pair of jeans along with a shirt and under tee. Sneaking back around the bed with clothes tucked against his chest, he considered sliding open the blinds to let the sun shine in, but it seemed a little too petty. He’d let Ravi sleep just a little longer he thought as he slid open the bedroom door and let it softly shut behind him.

In the living room/dining room/kitchen portion of their apartment he threw open the blinds to their one window there. There was something about the morning sun in the city that he loved. It bounced and leapt from towering glass buildings to reflect in the windows of cars or the chrome of the subway tunnels. The sprawling city of Sangeu never slept, as is said about all large cities, but there was definitely a surge of activity in the morning. Hongbin loved it, the press of life on all sides, even if he was inconsequential to the grand scheme of things, he loved the pulse of humanity there.

Amused at himself, he grinned wryly and scratched the back of his head while shuffling into the teeny spit of space called their bathroom. Mornings made him stupid, he woke with smiles and would find his melancholy again by evening when worry could set in. Something to do with the feeling that he hadn’t accomplished much during the day maybe? He wasn’t sure, nor did he want to spend too much time bandying it about in his head. Instead, he let the steam of the shower wash away the sleepiness in his eyes.

Out of courtesy to Ravi, he made it quick not wanting to take up all the hot water. Using the one amenity the apartment had to boast, a quick dry function built into the shower stall, he let the hot air whirl around him turning his hair almost as fluffy as his roommates. He dressed quickly and combed his hair into something more manageable, the soft brown looked plain to him compared to Ravi’s sky blue. Though the blue also made him kind of crave cotton candy as well, so there was that.

Back in the living room he switched on their third hand tv manually; the remote had been lost before they’d even got it. They both kept saying they’d buy a replacement for it, but in truth they had better and more important things to waste their money on. Some local morning talk show was on, but that was fine, he just wanted the background noise.

“Ravi-yah!” He yelled before entering the bedroom. The man in question was right where Hongbin had left him, curled around his pillow and sleeping away. “Ravi-yah,” he repeated, “time to get up! You’ll be late if you don’t get started now. I know your boss likes you, but don’t repay him by being late.” For good measure he pulled back the covers and tried to tug the pillow away from Ravi’s clutches.

A brief tug of war broke out over the object before Hongbin dissolved into giggles loud enough to penetrate even his roommate’s sleep addled brain. By the time Ravi could peek over the edge of the bed all he saw was his roommate on the ground, eyes and nose scrunched up in laughter that teased out his dimples. It was something of a sight to behold, and probably the best thing to wake up to in Ravi’s opinion.

He spent a moment grinning over his friends continued giggle fit until he spied the time read out. 7:20. Crap, he was going to be so late if he didn’t kick it into gear. Like a miniature hurricane, he scrambled over the bed toward the closet sending the bedding flying in all directions. His side of the closet was much less organized but he still managed to reach in and pull out what were hopefully a pair of long shorts and a loose t shirt that would match in record time.

Hongbin could only continue laughing as he watched Ravi zoom past him into the living room followed shortly by the bathroom door slamming shut. No one could out stripe his Wonsik when it came to speeding through the morning. (And also destroying well made beds it seemed.)

As Ravi showered at lightning speed, Hongbin poured them both a cup of coffee as well as spooned up a couple bowls of rice with some dried fish on top. Meager but filling enough to get them both started on their day. He ate his while sitting on their battered couch, watching some pretty suited sort on the tv talk about something or other going on in the city. The man on screen was speaking very animatedly, wide grins and fluttery hand movements, plus an air of confidence that he seemed to wear like a coat.

“...we’re going to open the week before Christmas and hopefully run straight through New Years and beyond. As the theatre just had renovations, it’s the perfect time to welcome everyone into our home and share what we love with all the people out there. I hope everyone will come and see this thrilling piece that will pull you under and hold you hostage for the whole show. We’re very proud of our production; every staff member has worked very hard to bring this to you.”

The smiley woman interviewing the promoter nodded her head along with all of his claims, doing a real good job of appearing to eat up his every word. “I know I’ll be there!” The two shared a laugh, the man with the enchanting eyes acting embarrassed by her praise. “And I think we’re all very excited to see the return of Leo to the stage. It’s been a little over a year since his last musical hasn’t it?” Hongbin’s head perked up at the mention of the stage sensation known as Jung Leo. Once, a couple years back, his parents had given him a Christmas gift of tickets to one of Leo’s musicals. He’d left with a couple of the singer’s albums and a strong want to see the show again.

“Mmm yes, we’re very happy to have his comeback be on our stage. As you know Leo-ssi has been focusing on his solo career but he couldn’t resist the role of Park Jihoon and the twisting tale of the birth and life of his criminal empire and his double role as a ruthless man and loving family man.” Pictures came up on the screen of a man dressed in a pin stripe suit, dark hair swept back from a striking face with high cheek bones and feline like eyes that seemed to be glaring straight through the camera into Hongbin himself. “Leo-ssi brings a chic charisma to the stage that I think is what sets apart his performance in this role as superior.” The promoter nodded along with his words, his earnest enthusiasm was clear.

“Opening soon at the Victory Theatre, it’s ‘Once Forgotten, Twice Removed’ starring Jung Leo-ssi. We hope to see all of you there!” The interviewer and promoter bowed to the camera to end out the segment.

“Wish I could go.” Hongbin muttered to himself with a grin. Maybe he’d get a lucky Christmas present again.

“Go where?” Ravi strolled out the bathroom looking 100% more awake than he had when he went in. His lips were spread in a wide smirk and he came around and sat companionably right next to Hongbin, scooping up his bowl of rice that rested on their tiny coffee table and digging in with gusto.

“Oh, a new musical is opening up soon down in the theatre district.” Hongbin explained even though he was pretty sure that if it didn’t include rapping, Ravi wasn’t the least bit interested. “I’m a fan of the lead actor,” he added quietly. Back when he’d seen his first musical he’d asked Ravi to go with him, but his friend had had a date at the time. Hongbin had been quick to explain that he wasn’t asking Ravi out, maybe a little too quick because he hadn’t quite been able to hide the blush that came along with the rushed response. It was his good fortune that Ravi had been all but oblivious, just responding with a shrug and a mellow, ‘it’s cool, dont’ worry Bin-ah.’

Ravi only nodded and continued woofing down his rice and fish. “You should check to see how much tickets are gonna be? Maybe you’ll find a deal?” He offered between bites. At the speed he was going though, Hongbin was just surprised he didn’t choke. He gave a noncommittal ‘hmm’ in response. He needed a new lens more than he needed to stare at one Jung Leo for an evening, no matter what his brain was screaming at him currently.

“Okay, I gotta run.” Ravi glanced at his watch and gauged just how fast he’d need to run to make it to the store on time. “Thanks for breakfast, Hongbinnie, I’ll get it next time.” They both made ridiculous faces at each other because it was never going to happen. “Come by the cafe when you get off work okay?” He tossed his signature thumbs up before grabbing his backpack and slinging it on. He was out the door even before Hongbin could blink.

Morning conversations with Ravi on workdays often went like that. Gone in a blink. “You better be off too, Hongbin.” he announced to himself to try and motivate moving from the couch. Piling the dishes up he set the in the sink to soak during the day before grabbing his camera bag and his jacket. “Subway, work, coffee, job hunt,” his finger ticked off each item for the day before he hustled out the door.

Hongbin liked mornings, every day was, after all, a new day.