"We're back, no more brakes." Joy loudly sang along as NCT Dream's Ridin' blasted in her ears. She entered the laundromat, swaying to the beat, as she knew it would be empty and there would be no mother of two to judge her. She placed her basket near a washing machine, still swaying and singing, and turned to get the washing powder. Thats when she realized that she was not all alone there. She had company, a very tall one to be precise. Joy ripped the earphones off her ears and strained her neck to look up at the man. He was staring at her as if she was from another dimension.

"Sorry, I thought Id be alone." Joy said.

"Yeah, me too." He said as he abruptly turned away.

Rude. Joy thought and shrugged. She walked to the shelves to pick the detergent. After setting the timer of the washing machine, Joy went back up to her floor and came back with another basket full of clothes. She dumped the pile of clothes into the machine. After setting the timer, she huffed victoriously as if she'd climbed Mt. Everest and mentally praised herself. The only thing now left was to wait. So, Joy took out her phone and started scrolling through it.

Joy wasn't really paranoid but she could fell eyes on her. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Mr. Tall Guy looking at her. She brushed it off and tried to focus on what she was doing earlier, thinking that maybe he was looking at the wall behind her. Even after a few minutes she could still feel eyes on her. She slipped her phone in her pocket and looked up. Her eyes met Mr. Tall Guy's but still, his gaze did not waver. He's really something. Joy thought. Or maybe he is really looking at the wall. She felt a bit offended that someone needed to look at the wall when she was present, in her whole self.

"I'm Joy." She tried.

Mr. Tall Guy jerked as if he was in a trance. "Uhh, you talking to me?" he said.

Joy looked at him with her lips a little parted and her eyebrow raised. "I didn't realize someone else was in here."

"Yeah right." He looked down embarrassed, his face a faint shade of pink. "I'm Chanyeol." He introduced as he stuck out his hand.

Joy nodded and they shook hands. And that's when she looked at him, like really looked at him. At that moment, there was only one thing going on in her mind, that when Taylor Swift said "He's so tall and handsome as hell," she probably meant this guy. She realized that she, too, was staring and pulled her hand away, stepping back a bit. They both stared at each other, not knowing what to say. The machines beeped, indicating that their laundry was done and Joy thanked all possible Gods available for the interruption. Both of them just turned around and began taking their clothes out of the machines.

Joy realized that she'd done a huge mistake by bringing two baskets full of clothes. She was overly motivated today and in the heat of the moment, she'd decided to finish all her pending laundry in one go. She regretted it now.

"How will I carry both the baskets?" She muttered to herself. "I was hardly able to save myself from tumbling down with one." Just then, someone tapped her shoulder. She turned around and saw Chanyeol looking down at her.

"Umm, I can help you carry those baskets." He said, looking unsure of himself.

Joy just stared at him dumbly. "Really?" The word fell from her mouth before she could stop herself. Well done, Joy.

Chanyeol rubbed he back of his neck," Yeah, I mean... I have only one basket so,you know... If you want to..."

"Yes, please." She said smiling.

Chanyeol nodded and picked one of Joy's basket along with his own while Joy picked the other one. As they walked to the elevator, Joy frequently looked at Chanyeol. She wondered how he could carry two baskets overflowing with clothes without any difficulty. He was a non-green Hulk. They entered the elevator and she pressed 7. She looked at him with raised eyebrows and he imitated her.

"Which floor do you live on?" She said. "I mean so that-"

"I'll drop off your basket first." He cut her off.

Joy nodded and stood on the other side of the elevator. "I'm not a serial killer, you know. You can tell me which floor you live on."

A hint of smile appeared on Chanyeol's face. "I'll pass. I've learned my lesson the hard way."

The elevator doors opened and they stepped off, walking to Joy's. They stopped in front of her door and Chanyeol noticed she'd not locked her door.

"You didnt lock your door?" He asked and she just shook her head. Chanyeol continued, "You know someone could enter your house, right?"

Joy laughed and something inside Chanyeol melted. "Don't worry about that." She said.

He still looked unconvinced. "I can check your house for safety purposes."

"I'm living wi-" Joy was interrupted by a voice.

"Noona, is that you?" Someone asked from inside the house.

Chanyeol looked at Joy. "That's my brother. He was here, so its safe." She smiled at him and turned, "Jaemin-ah, come and take this."

"Okay~~" A boy appeared from behind Joy and took the basket from her hands. His gaze landed on Chanyeol and his expressions hardened. "Who is this?" He asked strictly.

"He's... Chanyeol." Joy introduced, not knowing what else to say.

"And?" Jaemin narrowed his eyes at the other male. "Why is he here?"

Joy hit her brother on his upper arm, causing him to wince. "Yah, behave, he helped be bring this up."

"You couldve asked me!" Jaemin said.

"I did! You said you were busy." She took the basket from Chanyeol's hand and thrust it into Jaemin's. "Now take these inside."

Jaemin complied and walked inside, not before giving Chanyeol a rough glance. Joy sighed, "Don't mind him, he's just,"

"Protective." Chanyeol completed. "Brother instincts, I know. Dont worry, its okay."

Joy smiled and nodded while they stood there awkwardly. She was about to say something when a voice rang from inside the house, "Noona, what are you doing there? Come inside." Jaemin shouted causing Joy to sigh.

Chanyeol let out a breathy chuckle and said, "I guess you should go."

"Yeah, thanks for the help. Bye." She waived.

"Bye. You go in first." Chanyeol said and Joy nodded, closing the door behind her as she walked in. Chanyeol smiled looking at the place where she previously stood and walked away.

Jaemin raised his eyebrows at Joy when she entered the house. "Aish, it was nothing." She said as she pushed her brother towards his room and ran to her own.

_______________________

After that day, they both went to the laundry every week on Sunday at 10:30 p.m. and acted surprised on seeing each other as if they hadn't been waiting for it all week. They'd started talking without being awkward.

"Who told you it was a good idea to leave all your laundry till 11 pm on a Sunday night?" Joy questioned.

"The same person as you apparently." Chanyeol shrugged.

"Yeah, right." She said. "But seriously. Dont you have a girlfriend? What type of person are you, doing laundry on a Sunday night?"

"A boring one. Don't you see? A 27 year old adult, with no girlfriend, doing laundry on a Sunday night. What a sad, little life." He laughed. "What about you? No parties or crazy nights?"

"I'm deeply offended." Joy fake gasped. "You think I'm like that? I'm practically a saint." She defended, causing Chanyeol to laugh.

They grew closer as the weeks passed. They discovered things about each other, that hardly anyone knew and it amazed them. Like Chanyeol hadnt thought that Joy was the kind to visit dog shelters and Joy didnt knew that a huge hulk like Chanyeol could actually cook. Chanyeol would look forward to that one hour on the Sunday night and it was the same with Joy. But neither of them tried to reach out or contact the other during the rest of the week. They didnt have any other reason to. It was like, Joy and Chanyeol, they existed only in that bubble of the laundromat. Until, one of them decided it was enough.


___________________

Joy hopped, despite the weight of the basket, making her way towards the laundromat. It became a part of her usual routine. Thinking of that one hour gave her a fluttering feeling. Jaemin had been observing her the whole time and had often told her that she liked Mr. Tall Guy but she brushed him off. It was just that she got someone to talk to while doing the disastrous laundry and nothing else. Right? Moreover, neither of them contacted the other any other time, so it probably didnt mean anything. She brushed off the thoughts, hopped off the elevator and walked to the laundromat. Chanyeol was already there, like always, and she gave him a sunny smile. She kept her near a machine and turned to look at him. Something about him was different today. He was in his usual attire but his hair was damp. Looks like he just took a bath.

"What are you thinking about Joy? Stop it." She quietly scolded herself and moved to the shelf where the detergents were kept. To her surprise, all the detergents were placed on the higher shelf. Usually they were placed two shelfs below which made it easy for Joy to reach them but today they were kept higher.

Joy stood on her tip toes and stretched her hand to reach one but failed. She huffed, annoyed, and tried again. Just then she felt a presence behind her and a hand reached for the detergent and picked it. She turned around and saw Chanyeol looking down at her. They locked eyes and he took a step forward. Joy stared into Chanyeol's eyes and the look in his eyes was something she couldn't decipher. He raised his eyebrow and Joy immediately looked down. She tried to move past him but he had already placed both of his hands on the counter, trapping her. He held her chin and raised her head to look up at him. They stared into each other's eyes as he leaned in. Chanyeol's hand, that was previously holding her chin, moved to her neck and his thumb caressed the area near her earlobe as Joy's eyes fluttered close. Chanyeol looked her lovingly before closing his eyes and locking his lips with hers.

Their lips moved together, slowly and softly. Chanyeol's other hand was placed on her waist, pulling her closer while Joy's hand found their way into his still damp hair. After a few moments, they parted with a smile on their faces.

"Hey." Chanyeol whispered.

"Hmm." Joy returned.

"I think I like you, like, in the like type of like."

She chuckled. "That's a lot of likes."

"Yeah, I think I like you a lot." He breathed, smiling.

"Me too." Joy said and pulled him in again.