It was about ten minutes before the club’s afternoon closing hour. It was a weekday and most of the lunch crowd had gone leaving Heaven pretty much empty. Joon-myun was at work at the bar counter arranging the glasses and drinks in place as he stifled a yawn. It was then a middle aged woman in the late-forties strolled in.  She was rather well dolled-up, had a rather unblemished complexion, and a straight medium length bob parted in the centre with curls in the ends.

Her features reminded him of someone he knew, though he could not quite figure out whom.

“Eo-seo o-se-yo son-nim,” Joon-myun greeted with a smile. “Are you here for a drink or meal? We’re closing in ten minutes though.”

“I’m here to look for someone,” the woman replied. Before Joon-myun could probe further, she asked urgently, “Is Kim Jongin here?”

“She knows Kai’s name,” Joon-myun thought to himself. “Could she be Kai’s relative or something? She must be. They look rather alike. Is she the mother?”

He politely responded, “He does live here. But he’s not around at the moment. He should be back from school soon. Maybe you would like to wait here for a while. Do you want to order anything?”

“It’s okay,” the woman replied. “I’ll just sit down and wait.”

“Who are you?” Joon-myun asked.

But she did not answer, but walked to one of the tables, pulled out a chair and took a seat. Joon-myun noticed that she was studying the place.

“I wonder what she wants from Kai,” Joon-myun thought to himself. “Does she want to take him away? That would be great. At least I don’t have to see him anymore. Then he and Kyungsoo would have to split and maybe I would have a chance with Kyungsoo.”

Just then Kyungsoo and Jongin entered Heaven hand in hand with one another. The woman stood up with excitement and called out, “Jongin.”

But her joy on her face turned to displeasure when she noticed the two boys holding hands.

“What are you doing here?” Jongin coolly asked. There was also a tinge of wariness and antipathy in his tone. “Are you here to create trouble? If you are, then go.”

The woman approached Jongin with a smile and threw her arms around him and gave him a hug. But Jongin stood upright and unflinching with a hardened look. His was still holding Kyungsoo’s hand and didn’t return the woman’s hug.

“How are you? I missed you,” she said with tears b in her eyes.

But Jongin pushed her away and continued his cool façade and chilly tone, “I’m doing fine as you can see. I’m still healthy. I’m eating well. So you can go now.”

Even Kyungsoo was surprised by Jongin’s frosty treatment to the woman. He gripped Jongin’s hand even tighter to express his surprise.

“Jongin-ah, I’m your mother. Aren’t you glad to see me?” Mrs Kim asked.

This revelation shocked Kyungsoo further. But knowing what Jongin had gone through, Kyungsoo could empathise with him. However, he did not expect such a toughened reaction from Jongin towards his mother.   

“We’re no longer related with one another,” Jongin responded hostilely. “You’ve disowned me, remember? So go home.”

Mrs Kim broke down in tears. “I can’t go home.”

“It’s not like you’ve been thrown out of the house or disowned for being gay or something,” Jongin remarked caustically.

“Your...dad…had a heart attack. He’s quite critical. Please come and see him,” she pleaded.

Jongin was astounded by the news but it did not change his stoic demeanour. “It’s not like he’s going to die tomorrow or something, right? And if he is as critical as you claim, shouldn’t you be by his side now and caring for him instead of coming down all the way to Seoul?”

Mrs Kim slapped Jongin in anger when she heard those words. But her face expression changed to horror when she realised what she had done. She reached out in attempt to caress Jongin’s face but he pulled away from her.

Glaring at his mother hatefully, he said, “You haven’t changed one bit since then, have you?”

“Jongin-ah, it’s not like that. Your dad has to undergo a surgery. It’s a 50-50 chance. He might die. He begged me to bring you home. He wants to see you. Please come home with me. He’s still your dad after all,” she pleaded.

“Correction,” Jongin said coldly, “he was my dad.”

“Jongin-ah, think about all the love your dad had shown you all these years. He worked hard for you and gave you everything you wanted without grumbles or complaints,” Mrs Kim reasoned.

“And yet both of you can’t accept me being gay,” Jongin retorted.

“Jongin-ah, please come and see your dad. He really misses you. He wants to see you. If his surgery isn’t a success, you wouldn’t get to see him again,” Mrs Kim burst into another round of tears again.

“We won’t force you to come home with us. If you like it here, you can just stay here. You can do whatever you want. Just come and visit your dad,” she pleaded.

Jongin wavered a little at his mother’s words and the realisation that his father might just pass away and he (Jongin) would not be able to see the older man for the last time. If that was his last wish, shouldn’t he at least try to fulfil it? How could he be so cruel as to break the older man’s heart?

“Jongin-ah, I’ll be returning home tomorrow in the afternoon. I’ll come pick you up around from here around noon.”

Jongin did not respond to his mother further. She sighed and said she would take her leave first before reiterating that she would return the next day.

……

“Can’t sleep?” Kyungsoo whispered in the confines of his and Jongin’s shared room. Jongin had been tossing and turning about in his sheets.

“What about you? Can’t get to sleep either?” Jongin hummed whilst staring at the ceiling.  

“Yeah,” Kyungsoo murmured. Pausing for a while to tread carefully with his words, he asked, “Is it because…?”

“Hyung, I don’t know what to do. On one hand, I don’t want to care about them since they can’t accept me for who I am. I hate them for this. Although I’m no longer their son, family ties aren’t easy to cut. They’re all that I’ve known since I was a baby. And they did love me and dote on me. When I wanted to learn dancing, my father paid for all lessons. He did not forbid me, but instead encouraged me to work hard. They would do their best to be present at all my dance competitions. I know they were proud of me when I won the competitions.”

A lump had formed in Jongin’s throat and his eyes began to get wet as he reminisced about the past. “I also know that my father is working very hard to support the family. And now that he’s sick and at the risk of death, I don’t want to see him because I can’t forgive him for not accepting me. . Yet I’m just behaving just like them – being intolerant of others. I don’t know how to bring myself to see him. I’m such a terrible son. I’m ashamed of myself.”

“What does your heart tell you to do?” Kyungsoo probed?

“To make a trip home and see my dad, but…” Jongin hesitated.

“But what?”

“It’s just that my parents…they acted just like Chanyeol hyung’s mum when they found out that I was gay. And knowing everything Mrs Park did even till the day of hyung’s funeral, I shudder to think what they would do to me if I return home,” Jongin sighed. “But they’re still my parents. It’s not like we could choose our parents, can we?”

“No, you can’t. But at least they care for you. At a time like this, your dad still misses you and your mum made an effort to come all the way down to Seoul...whereas my parents...”

“Kyungsoo-hyung...I’m sorry...I don’t mean...”

“It’s okay Kai. But do you trust your parents at all?”

“It’s not that. But I don’t think they could accept me just easily like this.”

“Are you worried that they would do something to you?”

“Yeah...and I don’t want to return home and leave you all alone. What if...what if...you get sick...”

“Kai, I’m fine. Chanyeol’s death did bring back some unpleasant memories. I cried and I was depressed for a bit. But don’t worry, I would work this one out. Tell you what, why don’t I accompany you back to your home then?” Kyungsoo offered. “We’ll let appa and umma know so that they would be able to help if anything happens. But would your mother mind?”

“That’s a good idea, hyung. Thank you so much. Just ignore what my mum thinks. We’ll just visit my dad in the hospital and then return to Seoul immediately.”

“Alright, so don’t worry and let’s get some rest,” Kyungsoo said.

Jongin murmured another thanks as he settled down for some sleep.

……

Jongin’s mother arrived at Heaven at noon. Jongin was already waiting for her next to Kyungsoo. Her face brightened when she saw Jongin but let out a scowl when she found out that Kyungsoo would be accompanying them. She was about to raise her objection but Jongin threatened not to return home instead.

The three of them boarded cab to take them to the train station. Along the way, Jongin rested his head on Kyungsoo’s shoulder as he held Kyungsoo’s hand. This made Jongin’s mother feel uncomfortable as she fidgeted uneasily in her front sit as she watched the boys in the back seat from the mirror.

……

“Is Jongin around?”

“Kai…Kai…Kai…Jongin…Jongin…Jongin. Why is he so popular? Why is everyone looking for him?” Joon-myun wondered in his mind. It was getting on his nerves.

“Who are you?” he asked the boy in front of him. Joon-myun was trying his best to recollect where he had seen this boy before.

“Lee Taemin-imnida. Jongin’s friend.”

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Did anyone expect Kai's/Jongin's mother to visit? What do you think she is up to? Do you think she's sincere?

Do you think Kai did the right thing in returning to see his father?

And Taemin, what is he doing at Heaven?

And yes Joon-myun continues to be a flawed character for now.

Anyway if you guys haven't heard the news, EXO is finally going to make a come back. Let's celebrate.

Anyway I'll be overseas for more than a week. I'll post the next chapter if I can access the internet when on my trip. 

Meanwhile, thanks again for the comments, upvotes and subcriptions. Please continue to comment on this story.

Do check out  and comment on my other fan fics if you have not already done so.

My other fan fics

KyuMin: Almost a love story

KyuMin: 60 Days 

It's You (너라고) Neorago (a YeWook fan-fic)