10 Reasons to Live (1/?)
Title: 10 Reasons to Live (1/?)
Author: seoulkokoro
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Junhyung/Hyunseung
Summary: I find life annoying. I feel like I have nothing to live for, and no reason to be happy. Will you show me otherwise?
A/N: Ehhh…I’m not really sure about this. It’s slower paced then my other stories, but it’s not going to be a big multi-chap or anything. I’m kind of just experimenting. I just got off school and summer break has me staying up and I’m half asleep while I write things so sorry for any flaws or lack or sane sentences. ._.
The rain plummets from above, drenching everything in the city. Yong Junhyung walks through this particular city, trudging with every step. He sighs practically every minute-sighs because his life isn’t necessarily going uphill these days; it’s going the opposite direction. It’s going down and down and down and Junhyung wonders if his life is really just the rain, and his life is just dropping downward until finally it crashes and shatters on the pavement, busting into a million pieces.
And then Junhyung thinks he should stop acting so emo all the time.
--
Junhyung’s dad had just gotten a new job, oh but that’s not all-he’s also got a new girlfriend. A new, extremely annoying girlfriend.
A girlfriend Junhyung can’t stand the sight of.
But he bares it.
And he thinks his dad should thank him for being so accepting, but he keeps his mouth shut.
And now as Junhyung is merely a block away from home and drenched in the rain, he can’t help but stop. He took this walk to sort his thoughts and calm him down, but maybe it was just because he wanted to get out of the house. He looks at the house and pauses in his tracks, then turns on his heels and starts walking the opposite direction, despite his soaking clothes.
Junhyung is seriously pissed at his dad.
He’s seriously pissed and doesn’t want to return to that house-doesn’t want to even come in contact with it, because it reminds him too much of the times his dad’s girlfriend-“Terri”, had been over smiling like the idiot she was.
But of course, she was oblivious to her idiocy.
And Junhyung thinks maybe she should dye her hair blonde.
The real problem here is that Junhyung’s dad has gotten a new job. A job that requires him to move away, far away from their present location. Junhyung will have to leave his school, leave his friends, leave everything behind. He’ll have to leave all the memories of living here as child, all the memories of his mom before she passed away, and all the memories of growing up being surrounded by friends.
His friends nowadays were assholes, but they were still his friends nonetheless.
And they were fun at parties.
--
Junhyung isn’t even quite sure what job his dad got, but apparently it’s amazing, or else he wouldn’t even consider leaving here. He wouldn’t even consider abandoning all those precious memories that linger in that household.
Junhyung thinks that this job had better be good, or he’ll throw a fit.
He keeps walking-keeps walking far away from his house, because he doesn’t want to see it. He doesn’t want to see his house, or his dad for that matter. He doesn’t want to hear his dad reassure him or lecture him or anything. He just wants to be away from him. From everyone.
Luckily, the sidewalks and streets were deserted, due to the rain. It was still a bit humid though, and warm enough. Junhyung only wore jeans and a light sweatshirt, and that was mostly because he wanted to put his hood up.
Junhyung’s gaze was trained on the ground for most of his walk, until he saw a light from up ahead. He lifted his head lazily, not very eager to find out what was illuminating in the near distance. It was evening, and rather dark for a late spring night, so the light was easily noticable. To Junhyung’s surprise, there was a figure near the bus stop. There was a lamp post that obviously was the source of light, but that was long forgotten by the time Junhyung approached the stranger.
It was a boy, and that’s pretty much all Junhyung could tell from that. He appeared to have a bright color of hair, but it was kind of a fuzzy image in Junhyung’s brain because of the heavy rain draining out any sane vision. The boy was wearing a hoodie as well, which was up and over his hair, drenched in water.
Junhyung stopped and kept enough distance between himself and the boy. He didn’t want to get too close, because what if the guy was dangerous? He didn’t look it, but you never know, so Junhyung decided to play it safe. He stood for a minute or so, then grew impatient as the other didn’t seem to acknowledge his presence. He coughed awkwardly, hoping that would attract the boy’s attention.
Nothing.
He cleared his throat, tapped his foot, kicked the sidewalk cracks with his shoe, sneezed, did everything he could possibly think of, but the boy stood frozen, his gaze down on the ground. They stood for a long while in the rain, and it was silent. The city wasn’t filled with traffic today, and the only noise was the heavy pouring of water droplets. Junhyung finally sighed in defeat.
“Hey, kid. I’m trying to get your attention here,” he said, deciding to be blunt about it.
The boy looked up, finally, from his gaze on the ground. He met Junhyung’s eyes, but only offered a blank stare in return.
“You could’ve just talked,” the boy said, his dark orbs staring right through Junhyung.
Junhyung was stiff for a moment, as he didn’t expect that response. He was also wondering if he heard right, because the rain was a bit loud out here and he had to strain his ears to hear the boy’s soft voice.
“Oh.”
He mentally smacked himself in the face. Oh? That’s all he could freaking manage to say?
He then thought that maybe he shouldn’t be here. That maybe he should just be back at home, lying on his bed, listening and obeying his father and being a good kid. Moving without reluctance and accepting his dad’s decisions. He pondered a moment, then shook his head in disagreement.
Nope.
...Maybe.
“Well, sorry for bothering you,” Junhyung said awkwardly, turning to walk back towards his house. Before he did turn however, he heard something. Something very light, very quiet and subtle. He thought maybe it was his imagination, but he could have sworn he heard a small sound. A cross between a scoff and a chuckle, perhaps. It was so miniscule Junhyung thought he’d have to pull out a microscope to make sure he actually heard it.
He decided not to worry about it and head home.
Why would a random boy standing in the rain scoff/chuckle at him?
It was preposterous.
--
“Oh, I’m just so happy for you, dear!”
Junhyung made a disgusted face at the voice he heard coming from the living room. He was in the kitchen, grabbing a Coke when he heard Terri talking with his dad. He assumed they were talking about the job his dad had gotten, as Terri kept giggling and congratulating him.
“Junhyung? Is that you in the kitchen?”
Junhyung flinched at his dad’s voice. He thought maybe if he stood still for a long while, his dad wouldn’t call again. He thought maybe if he froze right there, his dad would just shrug the noises in the kitchen off and not think much of it.
But of course, Junhyung rarely had luck on his side.
“Junhyung?”
His father was now standing in the kitchen with him. Oh, but that’s not all. Terri was standing beside Junhyung’s dad, a stupid grin on her face. Junhyung held back the urge stick his tongue out at the lady. Instead he held a blank expression as he stared at the pair.
“What?” he asked, trying to keep his voice from sounding irritated.
“Why don’t you come sit and talk with us?” his dad asked, a smile now forming on his lips.
Junhyung swallowed down the knot growing in his throat. “No thanks.”
His dad’s smile dropped and he looked a bit concerned. “Why not?”
“I’m tired,” Junhyung retored. “I was just going to bed anyway…” he grabbed his Coke and went upstairs without another word, leaving the other two dumbfounded in the kitchen.
Junhyung was lying in bed, almost on the verge of sleep, when a knock sounded at his door. He practically screamed at the noise, because he was seriously agitated and just wanted to sleep right now. He reluctantly arose from his bed, then opened the door to see his dad standing outside his room. His dad smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of neck, letting out a nervous laugh.
“Uh, son…there’s really something I need to talk to you about.”
“Can’t it wait till morning?” Junhyung asked, his eyelids drooping.
His dad smiled. “It’ll just take a minute. You don’t have to come sit with me or anything…I’ll just tell you right here.”
Junhyung looked at him, tired and expectantly, waiting.
His father swallowed and darted his eyes around nervously before finally locking gazes with his son. He sighed and a rather guilty look covered his face.
“Y’see….well, there’s gonna be…a new addition to the family…er…”
Junhyung raised his eyebrows. “Oh, God. Dad, please don’t tell me Terri is pregnant.”
His dad suddenly looked flustered as he flailed his arms around. “N-No, of course not! I didn’t mean it like that, I mean…”
Junhyung’s widened eyes went back to their exhausted state. “Then what?” he said, obviously becoming impatient by his dad’s useless stalling.
His dad took a deep breath. “Um, well…” he started. “The new job I’m getting...it’s going to have to wait for a while because…” He paused. “My boss…he has a foreign exchange student, you see?”
Junhyung looked at him in disbelief, despite his tired state. “And…?”
“And…” his dad laughed awkwardly again. “And my boss is going on vacation…and he said if I still want that job promotion that I seriously need right now, I have to take care of his student that’s currently living at his house and…”
“Wait, wait, wait.” Junhyung stopped him. “Lemme get this straight. Your boss has a foreign exchange student in his house, and he’s going on vacation so he wants you to take care of the brat while he does who knows what? You know that’s considered black mailing?”
Junhyung’s father nodded slowly. “I know.”
Junhyung sighed, not really knowing what to say now. He thought the whole thing was stupid and ridiculous.
“But…” his dad started up again. “I need this job…so I’m going to take the risk of keeping the student here for two weeks.”
Junhyung’s eyes widen. “Two weeks?”
“Yeah…” His dad frowns. “I know it’s bothersome to you, but please be nice. I’m told he’s a stubborn but nice boy. You know, rough around the edges.” He paused before smiling at his son. “Like you.”
Junhyung frowned. “Well…whatever.” He started to close the door, when his father stopped him and gave him a stern look.
“Junhyung, please. When he gets here, be respectful and positive. I don’t want you chasing him off of anything.”
Junhyung nodded weakly, and not very convincingly, then shut the door.
He returned to his bed, hoping maybe he’d wake up and find out this blurry night was all a dream.
--
Unfortunatly, it wasn’t.
Junhyung figured this out the next morning when his dad was chatting on the phone with Terri about the new member they’d be having at their house. Junhyung scowled and went to the fridge to grab a glass of milk. His father gave him a light smile, but he ignored it.
It’s not like he cared.
He was talking to Terri anyway.
Junhyung sighed in relief at the fact school was out. He wanted to see his friends though. It was freaking boring, sitting at home. He flipped through some of the television channels until he settled on one, even though it wasn’t interesting at all. He yawned and drank his milk.
“Junhyung?”
Junhyung craned his neck to see his dad. “What?”
His father practically flinched at his son’s obvious pissed off behavior.
“Well…I’m going to pick up Hyunseung now…would you like to come?”
Junhyung cocked an eyebrow. “Hyunseung?”
His dad furrowed his eyebrows. “The foreign exchange student. I thought I told you his name last night.”
Junhyung shook his head. His dad simply made an “oh” with his lips.
There was a short silence, and then his dad left without even receiving an answer to his previous question. He knew the answer was no anyway. Why on earth would Junhyung want to go pick up some kid anyway? He cursed under his breath. He didn’t want another guy in the house. He was tired with just his dad around. He wanted to be alone.
He watched a full episode of some random cartoon, until the front door opened.
“Junhyung, come here! Come meet Hyunseung.”
Junhyung sighed, but did as he was told. He was still pissed, but he hid his expression as he walked towards the front door, not bothering to greet his dad.
A boy was standing behind his dad, around his age. He was surprised. He had expected it to be a kid around the age of twelve or so. Even though this kid looked young, he was certainly not twelve. Maybe fifteen at the least.
Junhyung stared at Hyunseung squinting, until finally a light bulb went off in his head. His eyes widened, and he stared at Hyunseung’s bright orange hair, his dark chocolate orbs, his pale skin.
It was that boy in the rain.