“Party tonight at my place!”
 
There were loud woots and cheers from the crowd as Choi Siwon made that announcement loudly as the graduation ceremony was concluded after the principal congratulated them and wishing them luck for the new journey the senior graduates will be embarking. Lee Donghae laughed as his best friends, Choi Siwon and Lee Hyukjae, threw him their graduation gown, seemingly delighted that it was finally over.
 
Donghae took off his robe with a wide grin as he watched Siwon and Hyukjae’s parents walked over to give each of them a big hug. “Congratulations boys.”
 
Donghae returned their warm hugs but as he looked around the stadium where parents and their children were huddled, disappointment coursed through him as he proved himself right once again.
 
He touched the bracelet his mom gave him as a gift when he graduated grade school that seemed like a long time ago. His mom didn’t even attend her only son’s high school graduation.
 
He had expected it but he had hoped that at least his mom would remember and make an effot.
 
“Hey.” Siwon nudged him. “You’re going to come with us right?” Siwon’s and Hyukjae’s family were friends and they had planned to eat out at the BlackSuit—a restaurant that served the best food in the city as far as the boys are concerned—together after the ceremony. They were both well-off with Siwon’s parents owning the largest hospital in Busan and Hyukjae’s parents—though divorced—are business partners in several hotels in the country.
 
“No, I think I got to get home and see what’s wrong with my mom this time.” Donghae had been friends with Siwon and Hyukjae since they were in pre-school and practically grew up together so they pretty much know how Donghae struggles with his mom’s constant weirdness.
 
“Oh c’mon, Donghae.” Siwon’s mom heard him. “Come have early dinner with us. I can contact your mother and have our driver pick her up.”
 
“That’s okay, Mrs. Choi,” Donghae said. “Actually, I just need to check on some things with my mom and I’ll probably follow to binge on your fridge tonight.”
 
“Hey! Don’t forget the party at Siwon’s,” Hyukjae said. “It’s eight tonight.”
 
“Oh I can come too, right?” Mrs. Choi asked his son.
 
“Mom!” Siwon protested. “No, the party is not for parents!”
 
Among all of them, Siwon is the only one who now has a place of his own. He is an actor who is already getting famous for a drama he became a lead on and already earning more than a high schooler could for a part time job.
 
Donghae chuckled. “I’ll see you later. “ He gave them a big wave as he walked towards the exit of the stadium, his smile falling as he reached his car. His family wasn’t as well off as Siwon’s and Hyukjae’s but they were able to manage.
 
He and his mother are living off her father’s insurance after he died two years ago. It was a pretty big money but Donghae knew it wouldn’t last so he had been working part time at a small radio station as an assistant for the manager. But for some reason, his mom isn’t touching the money. In fact, she was actually depositing money on their savings account. Money that he didn’t know where she got from. His mom doesn’t have a job. At least that’s what he knows. And whenever he asked where the money is coming from, his mother would just wave her hand in dismi