Youngjae's uncle watches as his nephew falls for the boy without a future.

∞

                The town treated the boy like a blight.

                His name is Jung Daehyun. He’s the son of Jung Hyeri and another man no one knows, but he certainly isn’t the son of the man he continues to call father.

                When Daehyun’s mother left, so did his smile. Daehyun would pick fights with other students and was often caught skipping school.

                He has no future, they would all say.

                I was always wary of Jung Daehyun. The stories about the boy who broke a classmate’s leg for calling him a bastard were enough to keep me cautious. But when that boy suddenly entered the shop with nothing in his hands but the bag over his shoulder and the worn cigarette box peeking from his pockets, something seemed to change.

                He was looking for my nephew.

                I knew that Youngjae always did have a tendency to hang out with bad crowds. I couldn’t help the animosity I first felt when Daehyun first stepped through those doors, but only after moments of observing the boy, the uncertainty in his expression, the restlessness in his shoulders, the genuine concern in his eyes, I thought that perhaps he was more than just another boy looking for trouble.

                Youngjae had spent most of that week in his room. I’m still not sure what drew me to do it, but I soon found myself handing Daehyun the very keys that he needed, hoping that maybe, just maybe this boy that the town would always call worthless could somehow draw Youngjae out into the daylight once more.  

                One visit soon became two. Then three. Then four and five, and I ended up seeing Daehyun around the shop more often than we ever had customers. Curiously, I’d watch as Daehyun would drop by on the weekends, sometimes with his little sister, sometimes by himself, but he was always there with the same intentions.

                Is Youngjae here?

                No, he isn’t.

                When will he ba