Chapter Text
Changbin doesn’t slam the door this time.
He just… lets it close behind him, slow and heavy, like even the effort of being dramatic is too much.
His tie comes off halfway down the hallway, loosened with one tired tug before he pulls it free and drops it somewhere near the couch. His shoes follow. Then him.
He lands face-first into the sofa and stays there.
From across the room, Hyunjin gasps like someone just died.
“No-no, don’t do that, don’t do that-” he’s half-standing now, pointing at the TV with a handful of popcorn. “If she walks away right now I’m actually going to lose it.”
Changbin doesn’t move. “I already lost it.”
“Shh,” Hyunjin snaps instantly. “This is a critical emotional moment.”
Changbin turns his head just enough to glare at him. “I just bombed another interview.”
“And she’s about to confess,” Hyunjin shoots back. “We’re both struggling. Let me have this.”
Changbin groans and rolls onto his back, staring at the ceiling. “Terrible, by the way. Since you’re clearly dying to ask.”
“Mm,” Hyunjin hums, eyes glued to the screen. “Yeah, I figured.”
“Wow. Thanks.”
“You have a defeated aura,” Hyunjin says bluntly, tossing popcorn into his mouth. “Very consistent. I respect it.”
Changbin flips him off without looking.
There’s a dramatic swell of music from the TV. Changbin sighs and drags his gaze over, mostly because it’s loud and he has nothing better to do.
The scene is ridiculous.
Rain. Expensive coats. Emotional tension thick enough to choke on.
And then there’s the guy.
Perfect hair. Perfect posture. The kind of face that looks like it’s never known stress a day in its life.
He’s standing there in the rain like it’s a photoshoot, staring at the girl like she’s the center of the universe.
Changbin squints at the screen.
“…Who’s that?”
Hyunjin gasps again, this time offended. “Excuse me?”
“I asked a question.”
“That’s Kim Seungmin,” Hyunjin says, like that explains everything. “He’s literally one of my favorite actors.”
“Okay?” Changbin says. “He looks like every other rich fictional man that would be your favorite.”
Hyunjin clutches his chest. “You take that back.”
“No,” Changbin says flatly, watching as the guy on screen gently grabs the girl’s wrist like he’s about to confess something life-changing. “He’s just-” he gestures vaguely. “Rich. Tall. Probably owns five companies. Of course she’s going to fall for him.”
“That’s not the point,” Hyunjin says, scandalized. “It’s about emotional depth.”
“It’s about the depth of his pocket,” Changbin mutters.
On screen, the guy softens, just slightly, and it’s so subtle Changbin almost misses it. But it’s there.
Like he knows exactly what he’s doing.
Changbin clicks his tongue.
“…He’s fine, I guess.”
Hyunjin turns slowly. “Fine?”
“Yeah. Cute at most.”
Hyunjin throws popcorn at him.
“That is disrespectful. That is a crime. I’m reporting you.”
Changbin snorts, dragging an arm over his eyes again. “Please do. Maybe I’ll get arrested and finally have stable housing.”
Hyunjin ignores that completely, already turning back to the TV. “You don’t deserve him.”
“I don’t want him.”
On screen, the guy steps closer to the girl, close enough that the space between them disappears.
Changbin watches for a second too long.
“…I want his bank account,” he corrects.
Hyunjin laughs. “Be honest. You’d fold in five minutes.”
“At most,” Changbin says, deadpan, “I’d be his sugar baby.”
There’s a pause.
“…and?”
Changbin shrugs, eyes still on the screen. “And I wouldn’t complain.”
Hyunjin bursts out laughing.
“God, you’re so real for that.”
Changbin huffs quietly, sinking deeper into the couch.
On screen, the guy smiles, small, like even that is something he doesn’t give away easily.
Changbin looks away first.
“…Still just cute,” he mutters.
But he doesn’t sound very convinced..
---
At some point, Hyunjin stops reacting.
The popcorn bag slips to the side, half-crushed, and his head tilts back against the couch, mouth slightly open, completely knocked out mid-episode.
Changbin glances over.
“…Unbelievable,” he mutters.
The TV keeps playing.
Rain turns into soft music, confessions into lingering stares, and somehow the rich guy is still standing there looking like he owns not just the company, but the entire economy.
Changbin shifts, propping himself up on one elbow.
“I don’t even care,” he says to no one.
The drama continues.
He keeps watching.
---
Ten minutes later, he’s still there.
“…Of course she says yes,” he grumbles under his breath. “Why wouldn’t she? No job, no stress, just gets picked by some rich guy who probably buys buildings for fun.”
On screen, the guy looks at her like she’s something rare. Something chosen.
Changbin scoffs.
“Must be nice.”
Hyunjin snores softly.
Changbin exhales and finally reaches for the remote, lowering the volume just a little. The room feels quieter immediately, too quiet.
He leans back, staring at the screen for a second longer before his gaze drifts away.
His phone is already in his hand before he really thinks about it.
Scrolling becomes automatic.
Job listings. Again.
Same titles. Same requirements. Same polite lies dressed up as opportunities.
His thumb slows.
Then stops.
A few months ago, this wouldn’t have felt like this.
A few months ago, he had a job. A routine. Something stable.
Then the company collapsed overnight, fraud, investigations, the whole thing wiped clean like it had never existed.
And just like that, he was out.
No warning. No backup plan.
Just… gone.
Changbin swallows, shifting slightly on the couch.
Across the room, Hyunjin shifts in his sleep, still dead to the world.
The apartment is small, a little cluttered, but warm in a way that makes it feel safe. Lived in. Shared.
Hyunjin doesn’t complain.
He works part-time, picks up random shifts, and whatever he doesn’t cover comes from his parents without much thought. Rent gets paid. Lights stay on.
It’s easy for him.
Changbin looks around the room.
It isn’t for him.
He hasn’t been paying his full share.
Hyunjin says it’s fine. Laughs it off. Tells him to stop stressing.
Changbin can’t.
His grip tightens slightly around his phone.
Scrolling again.
Faster this time.
Anything. He just needs something.
A job. A start. A way to stop feeling like he’s just… existing in someone else’s space.
On the TV, the drama keeps going.
The rich guy is still there, still composed, still untouchable.
Changbin doesn’t look at him this time.
“…Yeah,” he mutters quietly, more to himself than anything else.
“Must be nice.”
Changbin scrolls.
And scrolls.
And scrolls.
Same listings. Same words rearranged into slightly different disappointments.
His thumb pauses.
Refresh.
The page reloads slowly, like it’s thinking about whether to bother.
A new listing pops up near the top.
Changbin frowns slightly, sitting up a little straighter.
“…Huh.”
It’s… different.
Not another retail position. Not another internship disguised as “experience.” Not something that requires five years of work for entry-level pay.
It’s bold. Direct.
Manager / Bodyguard needed for high-profile client.
Changbin blinks.
Then looks at the salary.
He sits up fully this time.
“…That’s not real.”
He squints at the screen like it personally offended him.
The number doesn’t change.
“Yeah, okay,” he mutters. “Sure.”
His eyes move down the listing.
Requirements:
Physical capability (martial arts / self-defense experience preferred)
Financial handling / basic accounting knowledge
Flexibility with hours
Immediate availability
Changbin leans back slightly, reading it again.
Then again.
Slowly, his gaze drifts down to his own arm, still half-tensed from holding his phone.
“…Well.”
He flexes slightly without thinking.
The sleeve of his shirt tightens around his bicep.
Hyunjin’s voice echoes in his head, “if you ever go broke you can just sell pictures of your arms, I’m serious.”
Changbin snorts quietly.
Still… physical capability?
He rolls his shoulder, considering.
Years of actually sticking to the gym, one of the few things he didn’t quit. And before that-
“Boxing,” he says under his breath.
High school feels like a lifetime ago, but it counts. Probably.
Maybe.
His eyes drop back to the screen.
Accounting.
That, at least, he knows he can do.
He exhales slowly, staring at the listing like it might disappear if he blinks too long.
Manager. Bodyguard.
For a celebrity.
Changbin lets out a quiet, disbelieving laugh.
“Right.”
He glances over at Hyunjin, still asleep, completely unaware.
Then back at the screen.
The words urgent hiring sit there at the bottom, almost impatient.
Something in his chest tightens.
Desperate.
The word lingers, even if it’s not written.
Changbin huffs softly, running a hand through his hair.
“…It wouldn’t hurt to try.”
Even if it’s ridiculous.
Even if it’s fake.
Even if it goes nowhere, like everything else.
His thumb hovers over the apply button for a second.
Then-
Tap.
The screen shifts.
Application submitted.
Changbin stares at it for a moment, then leans back into the couch again, exhaling through his nose.
“…Yeah,” he mutters.
“Definitely not real.”
The TV keeps playing quietly in the background.
The rich guy is still there.
Changbin doesn’t look this time.