Taekwoon’s eyes slit open at exactly 5:29 in the morning, the remnants of moonlight just fading into the transition of morning filtered in through his curtains and he shifted onto his stomach, head turned to the side to read his wall overlay. Thirty seconds until the alarm, he was always just slightly ahead of the clock no matter when he set the alarm for, like his body wasn’t going to be disturbed without his approval first. It wasn’t a race Taekwoon.

Even as the alarm started chiming, softly at first as it was programmed, he didn’t stand to stop it. In his head he did a quick checklist of his day, sorting out his thoughts as the scent of freshly brewed coffee started filling his condo. Prepare for the day, morning rehearsals, quick interview (why interviews…), lunch. The chiming increased in volume as Taekwoon continued to lie there. He wanted to visit the coffee shop again, and his lips firmed into a thin line at that thought. It was becoming a much too frequent habit, and a flash of soft blue hair spiked in his memory. They had good coffee, he told himself. Maybe he believed that.

His body started moving as the alarm increased in pitch. Maybe coffee shop, he confirmed to himself, then it was back for afternoon rehearsals, try not to strangle Jaehwan because the cameras would be there for the BTS documentary Hakyeon had wanted, and then there was yet another photoshoot. Honestly, he was going to be relieved when the show actually started and he didn’t have so much promotional prep to get through. At least on the stage he was comfortable with everything, there wasn’t any niggling distractions when it was on stage.

The alarm shut off with a wave of his hand and he shuffled his way into the living area of his wide condo before anything else. Tall windows lined one wall, offering a beautiful view of the city, clean and sparkling from some trick of the light. In a lowered portion of the room was his deep set couch, coffee table, and television. The kitchen was situated behind a bar island, with seats nestled underneath. The countertops were marble and the cabinets had glass panes that were frosted over. And on the far left side near his stainless steel fridge was the holy grail of the morning, his automatic coffee machine. A fresh cup was waiting for him under the single serving dispenser and it was with a small almost imperceptible smile that he took his first sip.

The day was allowed to start after that.

By the time he’d had his first cup and a half of coffee and showered the sun was starting to just peek over the tops of the building surrounding his high rise. He wore only a towel hitched around his hips while he looked around his closet. It didn’t matter too much, he’d only have to go through wardrobe several times during the day. But he settled on a pair of skinny jeans, a soft sweater, heavy pea coat, and a pashmina scarf, all in muted colors. His hair was left to dry naturally, no doubt the styling team would attack it later for the interview.

Another 15 minutes and a short elevator ride down the 25 levels of his building and he was ready to start the day. A decision he almost immediately regretted as a hot red two door sports car pulled up to his curb. The passenger side door slid open and the grinning face of his so-called friend Jaehwan beamed at him. “Caught you!” he crooned and motioned for Taekwoon to get into the car. He considered refusing on principle but they were headed to the same location. “Get in, we’ll be late.”

Taekwoon folded himself into the low to the ground car and his friend sped off before he even had a chance to snap shut his safety belt. “You’re welcome for the ride.” Jaehwan said knowing that he was as likely to get a thank you out of Taekwoon as he was a hug. “Full dress rehearsal today, you ready for it? I stayed up last night re-memorizing all my lines. I bet you’re nervous too, it’s been a while since you’ve been on the stage. I don’t think I could go a whole year without it; I read a review once that said that I thrive on the spotlight, I think they were right.”

“Jaehwan-ah,” Taekwoon’s soft voice cut through all of his friends prattle easily, suddenly the other was waiting on his words. “Be quiet.” And at that Jaehwan only rolled his eyes and focused back on the road while continuing his monologuing but in smaller more digestible bites.

They were friends, or close to it, they’d known each other for years at least. Jaehwan had undoubtedly been at nearly every audition that he’d been to during the early days of his career, though hardly ever for the same role. They’d both caught their breaks around the same time too, albeit in different productions, but the talkative Jaehwan had said that it made them friends, not rivals. It was also his fault the Taekwoon had been given the stage name Leo.

At a dinner that he still wasn’t sure how he’d been talked into going to, Taekwoon had been told in no short amount of words that Jaehwan was going to go by ‘Ken’ from then on and that all of Korea, no, the World, was going to know it. So keen on the idea he’d then decreed that Taekwoon should go by ‘Leo’ due to his prowling like a lion nature, hunting down perfect roles and castings and how he’d always go directly for the kill with no mercy. He’d gone for the kill that night, trying to wring ‘Ken’s’ neck.

Somehow word had got out, probably Jaehwan’s fault, and it became a small story that became a larger story that became embraced as fact. Taekwoon was going by ‘Leo’. He still didn’t know why he hadn’t protested such nonsense. Probably because it was easier to accept than to try and clear up all the misunderstanding surrounding it. He didn’t hate the name, over time he may have come to enjoy it even. ‘Leo’ was the one who did the interviews and promotionals and mandatory appearances. Taekwoon could just be Taekwoon.

The Victory Theatre was a sight to behold. Old, but not in the way of decrepit disrepair, instead this was more akin to a gleaming testament of classic luxury. The building had passed through many hands but had generally always been a center for the arts. On a street where glass and chrome and LED screens dominated nearly every building, the hand carved stone columns and arches of the theatre stood out, a point taken out of time and as if in reverence the other buildings seemed to give it space where space was a commodity too rich for most. And there was some quality that he couldn’t quite place that came with performing on the stage there, something that the new theatres with their sleek designs and technological stages couldn’t quite capture.

Inside the splendor continued with lots of deep rich woods and creamy fabric upholstery. That was one of the many reasons that “Once Forgotten, Twice Removed” was playing in the Victory theatre for its debut. Like the theatre itself, the story belonged to a time past when organized crime was at it’s most ‘glamorous’ for lack of a better word. Taekwoon had been attracted to lead role, with all its complexities. Park Jihoon was a ruthless man, who didn’t quibble over the rules that governed the average man. He was driven and cunning and competitive, nothing was going to stop him from succeeding. But on the other side he did everything for the love of his family, to keep his father safe and to safeguard the future for his children. No one would say his actions were excusable but his motive was understandable. Of course that gets thrown all to hell in act two when it turns out a member of his gang was his younger half brother born from the same mother who had abandoned Jihoon at birth.The very same woman he had vowed to never have dealings with. But when that corruption was in his own ranks, he was forced to deal with it head on.

Taekwoon liked these roles though, filled with such complexities and passion. He could slip into it, let his own passion for music fill him with the right emotions to portray the same fire inside his character. For him, it wasn’t about the fame like Jaehwan seemed to love, or about the money though he hardly said no to his paychecks, it was the love of the music. The truest expression of thought and feeling. He’d been offered jobs in film, nothing big but the opportunity had been there to try and make the cross over into movies. It wasn’t the same though, and Taekwoon had always declined. The music was what pulled it together for him, that was where he found the drive to make the rest of his work fall into place.

Morning rehearsals started slow, people running late or make up and hair were taking longer than planned, that’s why they had dress rehearsals though. Taekwoon was ready though, hair swept back from his face, fit in a well tailored pinstripe suit, he sat in his office chair set piece on stage waiting for the others to join him. A well worn and used script laid on the desk next to him, just in case he felt the need to refresh on any of his lines.

“Taekwoon-ah,” a fellow actor strolled over to sit on the edge of the desk. Kim Woobin was new into the musical world, after a successful career as a film actor he’d moved into the world of live theatre. “Would you take me through a few scenes, I wanted to practice more.” Woobin was playing the role of Kim Joonyong, a corrupt cop who turns on Jihoon at the end of act one, but was also the understudy to the lead role.

“Mmmm,” Taekwoon merely nodded and reached for his script before a loud clapping noise drew his attention. The theatre manager, Hakyeon, strolled on stage with his cheery smile and gestured for those there to come to him. Behind him the rest of the morning cast came filing in, clearly he’d gone to round them up as well before drawing everyone to the stage.

“Good morning,” he called out as the group semi circled him, leaving the orchestra pit with a clear view so the musicians could hear the announcement too. “Ah, look at everyone in their costumes, this just makes me even more excited for our opening. It’s so close!” A brief smatterings of replies or claps came from the assembled group. “We’re so proud of you for working so hard. All of you have really shown your dedication.” Hakyeon’s enthusiasm was palpable, excitement thrumming through the air. It was annoying.

Taekwoon instead of listening, chose to review the scenes he’d be working on that morning, eyes flicking around the circle of gathered actors and actresses. Two scenes with Jaehwan, who played Jihoon’s second in command. Two scenes with Yoona, her role was as Jihoon’s loving wife and silent accomplice. A minor but important scene with Himchan, his role being a budding new comer to Jihoon’s gang but would later turn out to be his brother. And the act one end scene with Woobin.

“...don’t go anywhere during lunch…” Taekwoon frowned as he caught snips and pieces of the manager’s speech. But he wanted to get coffee during lunch. “...special catering…” Oh was that all? He’d rather go, catering meant that everyone would be gathered together to eat, which meant conversation. No. “...smile but act natural for the camera…” Right the BTS documentary, that explained the sudden pep talk. “...don’t forget the promo photoshoot this afternoon…” How many of those were they going to have to go through. “Taekwoonie, are you listening!?”

The piercing tone of the last question drilled through Taekwoon’s thoughts. Hakyeon had his fists on his hips and was staring pointedly at him, a pout unbefitting a man of his station on his lips. Though he seemed mollified by a slight nod of Taekwoon’s head, continuing on in his speech where he’d left off.

When it was finally time for lunch, Taekwoon was beat. They’d had a few prop malfunctions and a couple of slip ups, but it had gone well enough. A desk needed repairs, a chair’s wheel had come loose, and his prop gun had jammed which had led to one extremely long and exaggerated death scene to close the morning. After that he’d had a brief interview for some magazine, or maybe newspaper, he wasn’t sure. It had, thankfully, gone by quickly with a few quietly muttered words about the production.

He had to time his escape perfectly, the videographers were arriving and so were the caterers. Hakyeon had practically stationed himself at the exit to make sure that ‘everyone enjoyed the nutritious meal’ but what he meant was ‘you can’t escape our cameras’. Taekwoon waited until the right moment, Jaehwan approached Hakyeon and that was all the time he needed. Rather than try and be sneaky about it, he just barreled along past the two talking before the manager had a chance to reach out and latch onto him. He left the theatre to the sound of Hakyeon’s shouting both threats and bribes at him to come back.

There was no easy way to the coffee shop from the theatre. It was much farther than walking distance, there wasn’t a direct subway line to it, and Taekwoon didn’t have a vehicle of his own. Most days that he decided to go he just took a cab. He’d only found the place by accident. That part of town wasn’t a spot he frequented often but there’d been a studio there he’d considered using for recording. That had been a bust but when he’d dropped into the quaint shop for coffee he’d been more than satisfied with their brew and maybe a little intrigued by the smirking blue haired man who’d given it to him.

It was a slow process, he didn’t plan to go back. It was quite out of his way, after all. But then a lazy sunday had turned into a trip to the cafe, just because he was curious how many subway trains it would take. And then it had been that he was already half way there on another errand, he might as well stop by for a latte. Excuses piled up until it had just become a regular part of most of his days. Plus the coffee was truly excellent there.

The blue haired coffee boy wasn’t always there though, mornings he was never there but after that his schedule became sporadic. Not that Taekwoon was paying attention to such details, he was there for the coffee. If he didn’t go in the mornings anymore it was entirely to do with his own busy schedule.

He wasn’t stupid. He knew that that wasn’t true, the same way he knew that the barista was interested in him. At first he’d taken it for being a friendly nature, which he did seem to have from what Taekwoon had observed. Everyone who worked there all got along with him, the customers liked him, but he didn’t miss the way those slightly sleepy looking eyes would sharpen when he saw Taekwoon, or the way he’d been fishing for a name for a month at least, or sometimes how the tips of his ears would turn slightly red when he turned to look at Taekwoon and found the man already looking at him.

But he didn’t even know this guy, and maybe that was some of the charm of it too. What if he turned out to be insufferable? Or he really was just being friendly and was in a long time committed relationship. It wasn’t that Taekwoon didn’t have room for friends in his life he was just very choosy with the ones he took. Looking was nice, pretending that maybe they’d have something they could relate to over was also nice, but the facts were he was intrigued by the curiosity and mystery of him, what happened after those were gone? And while he at times debated letting the blue haired boy come speak to him, logic won out over desire and he’d leave the shop before he got the chance.

It didn’t stop him from coming back though, over and over, to tease that niggling itch that wondered what they’d talk about if they ever did. Because Taekwoon was such a star at conversation, he thought ruefully to himself. The casually noisy din of the coffee shop engulfed him as he stepped in out of the cold. Already he could see the wispy strands of blue hair peeking out between heads of the people in line.

But it was a girl at the register, and Taekwoon could just see the coffee boy working their espresso machine behind her. Quietly he recited his order to her, not really looking away from the other man though. She asked for a name and he shook his head, as normal while she plastered on a smile and keyed in the order for a receipt. He didn’t wait for her to recite the cost, instead slipping the amount across the counter.

Before she had a chance to direct him he was already moving toward the service counter. It was with a twinge of satisfaction that he saw the coffee boy’s head jerk up and his eyes scan the room. Taekwoon didn’t try to avert his gaze, choosing to meet the other man’s head on. They widened ever so slightly before crinkling a little as the man gave a bemused smile. His head ducked back down and he continued working but something felt a little tight in Taekwoon’s chest.

“Double shot latte to go!” Taekwoon was already at the counter but didn’t mind the loud timbre of the other’s voice. There wasn’t enough time to stay and observe that day, but it felt good to be there at least for this. “It’s good to see you again.” Taekwoon froze and just stared intently at the blue haired man. A faint color rose on the other’s cheeks and it felt like they just stood there staring for a minute, though it must have been shorter.

“Yes.” Taekwoon’s quiet voice carried across the short space between them and a small smile spread over him before he was taking his cup with the insufferably cute cat’s face art on the top and leaving.