Chapter 4 - Blue

That night Yuka went to bed and Ryu continued to work on an upcoming project proposal for the week. After a night out drinking with his friends, Ryu would usually continue working when he gets home. For him, the adrenaline and serotonin from the alcohol he consumed helped his creativity and productivity when creating music. Maybe that's also a reason why he never sees himself working in the corporate industry. 

It was three-thirty in the morning and Ryu is still working. He decided to take a break and smoke when he realized he was already out of it. He pulled out a jacket from his cabinet and took his keys and wallet before heading out to the nearest convenience store.

There was still no sign of sunlight and that made him feel happy and productive at the same time. Happy that the sunlight wouldn't blind him from working in the dark and productive that he was able to do a lot before sunrise. 

When he arrived at the convenience store, no one was there except the two staff who was working that shift. He went to the drink section and opened the fridge. He grabbed three black coffees and five lattes. When he is super stressed out he prefers to drink plain black coffee but for his usual, he loves his coffee with milk and a little sweetener.

He brought his coffees to the cashier and grabbed a two-pack of cigarettes. After paying for the items, Ryu felt like he wants to smoke and drink coffee before heading home. He wanted to enjoy the day and watch the sunrise before anyone could.

Ryu walked to the park and came across three people who were jogging. He continued to walk until he arrived at a bench in front of the pond. He checked and didn't see anyone sitting on the benches next to where he was standing before he decided to sit. He grabbed a latte and took a sip before he lit a stick and smoked. 

A meeting for a project proposal is set within the week for him to present to the agency. He had never worked on a project for a big client like this. It will be his biggest opportunity to make it or break it in the music industry before his parents find out about dropping out. 

He wasn't nervous about presenting his work but he was nervous about doing the presentation itself. Dropping out of college helped him to get away from presenting in front of people he barely knew. He didn't realize that dropping out and creating music would just get him to present his work to people he barely knew each time. 

Looking out of nowhere while smoking, Ryu wonders if this opportunity doesn't work out for him will he lose passion and stop pursuing this career and go back to his hometown to help his parents with their business. He never felt the pressure of life, or at least it never got into him. But everyone is almost graduating from college and he still hasn't made it as big as he wanted. Sure, he had worked on several mid-size projects and has a decent amount of savings that will let him survive for years without working. But what he wanted was to produce music and where he is and his savings now, are not even halfway from where he wanted them to be. 

It was the first time he felt lonely making those decisions. He never felt it before, but these past few days he started to realize that he is the only one taking a different path from them. He knew it was never going to be easy for him and understood the consequences of his decisions. 

His phone started to ring, he pulled it from his pocket and realized it was his four-thirty alarm. He looked at the sky and there was the sun hidden behind the clouds. That should be enough for me to go home, he thought to himself. He turns off the alarm, slid his phone back from his pocket, and stood up to grab his things to leave the park. 

When he arrived at his apartment, he took off his shoes and headed inside. "Good morning Ryu!" Yuka said as she prepares breakfast. "Oh, hey Yuka." He greeted back surprised that she was up this early. "Do you want to have some breakfast?" Yuka asked. "Uh. No thanks, I'll be sleeping." He said as he open the fridge and unload the coffees from the convenience store. "Okay, if you change your mind just let me know. I cooked enough for two." Yuka smiled and continued to cook. "Here's a coffee," Ryu said as he placed one latte on the counter close to Yuka. "Feel free to grab whatever you want in the fridge," Ryu said and walked out of the kitchen. Yuka turned around to say thank you but Ryu just got in his room and closed the door. 

Yuka was thinking about why Ryu looked tired and more reserved compared to last night. Maybe he was more loosened up last night because of the alcohol. After cleaning up, Yuka took the canned coffee on the counter and slip it inside her bag before leaving the apartment. 

It hasn't been that long since Yuka moved into the apartment but she's getting more comfortable each day and going out last night with Ryu, Nato and his band mates help a lot to it. 

Nato told Yuka before moving into the apartment a bit about Ryu. He told her about his schedule, daily routines, and his rules when Nato and he was living together. Yuka was told that although Ryu's family owns a small restaurant, he barely cooks. He knows how to cook and does it well, but he wouldn't want to and would prefer to buy outside for convenience. Ryu would rather spend money than time cooking and doing more work. Ryu would also tend to skip his meal and instead drink coffee while smoking when he is super busy or stressed out because of work. Yuka wanted to show her gratitude for bringing her along last night so she decided to wake up early and cook breakfast, enough for two. But it seemed like Ryu headed out early to eat breakfast. She wonders how Ryu is so disciplined, being able to do so much after a night of drinking. She wonders why Nato would speak about Ryu with so much amazement and respect, but now she is starting to see why.