Home
"Is it possible for home to be a person and not a place?"
-Stephanie Perkins, Anna and the French Kiss

The only sounds he could hear at the moment was the notoriously loud music pulsing through his headphones. The only thing he could see at the moment was the blinding headlights of the cars that drove past him. There was the occasional biker with reflective clothing draped on, and the only thought that ran through his head was whether or not that person was in the right mind to be cycling out at such a late hour.

His lips opened and closed, depending on the lyrics of the song. However, when the song became one without lyrics, he would start to bob his head along with the rhythm. The music did little to aid in easing his nerves. He only had it playing so he could ignore the sounds of life all around him.

Taking out his phone, he looked up towards the top right corner at the time. He clucked his tongue in surprise. He was supposed to be home about 2 hours ago, so why was he still wandering around the streets?

The reason was simple- he had no reason to go home.

The wind picked up, seeing as how the night got darker and he felt his skin bristle at the contact. He cursed himself for wearing such a thin sweater. Huffing in a few breaths of air, he flapped his arms a few times to warm himself up before continuing his walk down the lifeless street.

He had not noticed that he managed to walk so far until his now dark-accustomed eyes were greeted with the neon bright lights of the downtown stores. He quickly averted his gaze back to the ground beneath him, groaning silently at the sudden switch of light-and-dark levels. After preparing himself mentally, he dared cast a glance up towards the downtown nightlife.

Many people were walking about, just like himself. Although, they all seemed to have a purpose. Whether it be the girl's hand draped around a male's, or a group of friends heading towards the karaoke bar. They all had somewhere to go.

Where was he going?

He headed towards the bar at the end of the street. Pushing the door open, he headed inside. He was greeted by a beautiful lady, if he had to say so himself. He nodded at her in acknowledgement, offering a smile before walking towards the counter. He took a seat, and the bartender walked towards him after serving another customer.

He said nothing in return, and the bartender assumed that the man was not ready to order. Thus, he walked away to serve another who had just walked through the door.

In all honesty, he was never a drinker. He disliked the taste of alcohol, but if the circumstances pushed him towards it, then he would drink it without a second doubt. The circumstance in which he was in at the moment gave him absolutely no reason to consume a drink that would ultimately ruin his state-of-mind.

He was only allowed a few minutes of getaway before his phone vibrated inside his sweater pocket. A soft sigh escaped his lips. Sliding his thumb over the screen, he picked up.

“I'm coming home now, don't worry.”

If it were not for the sun the came streaming in through his window, he would not have stirred from his sleep. He frowned, fully-realizing that he would have to remove himself from the comfort of his bed to walk over and close the blinds. He mentally scolded himself for forgetting to close the curtains before he went to bed.

Then again, what time did he fall asleep?

He faintly remembered the door was left open for him by the time he arrived at the house. He also recalled that he had dragged his body up the stairs towards the location where his bedroom was situated. Then, the rest was blurred out after he figured he must have collapsed onto the bed.

Letting out a noise of discomfort, he pushed himself so that his back was now leaning against the wooden headboard. He winced, feeling the cold surface temperature of the wood against his bare skin. He removed himself immediately, throwing his comforter off his body and swung his legs towards the side of the bed before letting his feet reach the floor.

He reached for his t-shirt, which had wrinkled itself over night under the constant contact with his rolling body. Throwing it over his head, he walked out of his room and towards the washroom.

He took a good look at himself in the mirror. His dark circles could be seen, and he tilted his chin left and right to inspect the hair stubble on his chin that he would need to shave off. Reaching a hand to the side, he wrapped his fingers around his face towel and hunched his whole figure towards the sink to soak it. The fact that his body felt refreshed after matting his face down with the cotton lifted his mood a teensy bit.

He squeezed out the shaving cream from the dispenser, and began to lather it over his face. Deeming it was enough, he began to get rid of the hairs that could potentially be considered imperfections on his face.

Inspecting his face once more after washing off all the excess cream, he nodded in satisfaction before opening the door of the washroom to walk towards the kitchen. He let his eyes gaze over towards the wall clock. His mind began turning as he calculated what he should do next. Brushing off breakfast, he walked back into his room to change.

He had somewhere he wanted to go.

He twisted the car keys, successfully turning the car off before reaching for his sunglasses inside the gloves box. He put them over his eyes, and inspected himself in the mirror before clasping his hand around the door handle to push it open. He let out an audible yawn. It was one that he didn't even bother to cover up before walking towards the door that led to the elevator and out of the dimly lit parking lot.

The elevator jerked to life, and began hauling him up the many floors to his destination. He stepped back towards the corner of the elevator when it stopped on a floor he had not originally intended. Two other people got in, and they pressed the buttons to the floor in which they were supposed to go.

The two of them were engaged in a conversation, but he himself was never an eavesdropper and that was precisely why he zoned out to avoid listening in. He was silently pleased when the two of them got off, and he situated himself back into a more comfortable position where he could lean against the railing. He looked up at the electronic screen and realized he was only two floors away.

The elevator dinged, signalling that he had arrived. He walked out and made his way down the hallway to where he recalled the main reception desk to be. His memory was deemed to be correct when the girl sitting behind the desk looked up from her computer screen. She gave him a polite smile,

“Hello there. Who may you be here for?”

“Jae Inho. My name is Jung Hoseok,” He replied, taking off his sunglasses to hang them on the nape of his button-down. He watched as her eyes flickered back towards her computer screen, and he stayed rooted in his spot. He heard the clicking of her computer mouse a few times before she turned back to him and stood up to give him directions. “His office is down this hallway, and it will be the last door to your left.” He thanked her, and gave her a slight nod of his head before making his way down the broad hallway.

The department was rather big in size, seeing as how there was a spacious lobby and the hallways looked like they could fit five people side by side. The walls were decorated lavishly with regal wallpaper, and the light protruding out from the pristine walls gave off the sense that they must have been a costly buy.

He arrived at the door the receptionist had led him to, and he knocked. He stayed silent for a few seconds before he heard shuffling, and the door in front of him opened up to reveal the room of a Chief Marketing Officer. He looked up at the man in front of him, who broke out into a fatherly grin at the site of the boy in front of him. He waved his hand, ushering him inside before closing the door. The two of them walked towards the desk, which was at least a 10 metre distance away from the door.

“I honestly thought you wouldn't show up.” The older man commented as he returned to his big leather office chair to sit down. The younger male shrugged and took the seat parallel to him. “I'm here now.”

Inho smiled before leaning back in his chair. He looked around at the office before turning back to the boy in front of him. “What do you think of my office?” The boy let his eyes gaze over the spacious room and he let out an honest chuckle. “You have more room for things than you need. Not to mention, if someone hired someone to assassinate you, it would be a hundred times easier with the seven panels of glass you have as windows.”

“Don't worry, they're bulletproof.” The man remarked before the two of them laughed in unison. Waiting for the laughter to die down, the younger male swirled his chair back to face the man. “So, why did you call me here?” Inho raised an eyebrow. “You should know why, Hoseok.” Said male let his head fall back against the chair and he lifted an arm to shield his face, almost as if that would ease his mood. Inho stayed quiet, allowing time for the younger male collect his thoughts to speak.

“I have no interest in moving to a foreign country,” He spoke up, his voice fully expressing the exhaustion he felt at the moment. Inho let a small smile make its way onto his lips before he leaned forward to rest his elbows onto the desk. “Then let me ask you, what do you have interest in doing?”

“I know for sure it's not going to America to run a branch of the business.” Hoseok removed his arm, and let out a sigh as he swirled the chair towards the glass windows, giving him a clear view of the rooftops of the many other buildings in the city. Inho nodded in understanding. “Have you tried telling him?” Hoseok turned back to face him, and his lips were now curved up into a daunting smirk. “You think I haven't? That crooked man always seemed so adamant on keeping me in one place, but now he seems even more determined to move me around."

Inho let out a small laugh. “I can see why he would want to, kid. I know he means for this to be a getaway.” He observed the boy's face, realizing how tired he actually was. Everything must have built up, and he was never too keen on talking to people about his feelings. Inho was one of the few he opened up to.

“I told your old man back then that he should have let me raise you instead.” He clucked his tongue at the memory. Hoseok chuckled at the older man's words. “He would've never let you.” Inho nodded and rolled his eyes. “Of course. He loves to keep things to himself.”

“Is your mind already set? You really don't want to go?” Inho probed on once again. The younger male's face flickered in annoyance this time. “I made up my mind.” Inho nodded. “Then, I respect your decision. I'll tell your father, and hopefully he'll change his mind. I, honestly, wouldn't want you going.”

“I would have wished for you to be my father,” Hoseok commented. Inho felt his heart warm up at those words. “It sure feels like it though, doesn't it?” The other smiled. “Yeah. I see you more than I see the crooked man himself.” Inho reached for his coffee mug to take a sip. “Has he come home yet?” Hoseok rolled his eyes. “You know he rarely does. He'd do anything to stay inside his office.

A knock was heard on the door, and Inho's eyes flashed in remembrance. He cursed outloud before calling to the person on the other side. “Sir? You have your next meeting in 15 minutes.” Inho nodded before flicking his hand to tell her to leave. She nodded, bowed, and closed the door behind her.

“I think it's time for me to go.” Hoseok stood up to smooth out his dress shirt. Inho looked at him. “Call me if you need someone to talk to. I'll make room for you. Also, go do something productive today for a change.” The younger male gave him a salute on his way out.

“I'll try.”

He didn't return to the house until the sun had set, and the stars that had hid themselves during the day, hung high above in the night sky. He drove up the hill and passed the iron gates that guarded the family home like a sanctuary. The house itself was a modern-looking house. It had a pristine white exterior, and was built with two levels. It was larger than an average South Korean home, but that was no surprising fact, seeing as how the house was inhabited by a family of higher class.

He pressed a button from within the car, and the garage door clattered to life. It folded upwards to allow leeway into the automobile storing area. Parking his car beside his motorcycle, he stepped out and the garage door automatically closed itself.

He pushed open the door leading into the house, and hung his keys back onto the wall. Shuffling off his shoes, his hand fumbled around on the wall before he found the light switch. He the lights of the house and it illuminated every corner. He was glad his eyes could make out the furniture- as opposed to seeing in the dark.

Looking around, he made up his mind to head to the kitchen and get himself a glass of water. He let a small sigh escape his lips when he saw that the dishes had piled up in the sink. Brushing past, he walked towards the cupboard to grab a cup like he had originally intended to.

He slowly sipped away at his drink as he stood in front of the sliding-glass door of the patio. He stared out towards the pool, and he watched as the moonlight bounced back off the water's surface in a mysterious glow. The silent rippling of the water captured his interest for a few minutes, before he deemed it was time for him to head to sleep.

The white staircase made little sound as he made his way up. Pictures hung along the wall, and they were one of the few furniture pieces that weren't in complete white. It contrasted well between the metal frames, and the white wall the pictures clung onto.

Reaching the top, he turned down the hallway to the right. The hall in which his bedroom was located. He arrived in front of his door, and was about to twist the doorknob open. However, not before stealing a quick glance towards the door at the very end of the hall. He tilted his head, seeing the door parted. The darkness from the room seemed to seep through the cracks, and he twisted his gaze away.

Inho had told him to do something productive today- as he did every time he saw the boy. On the other hand, the younger male had done absolutely nothing today. After he left the office, he had gotten into his car to drive around. He walked along the streets, went into a few cafes, and even headed through a short nature trail. If keeping his mind occupied meant productive, then sure, he did something productive.

He ed his shirt, and threw it idly off to the side before sitting down on his bedroom couch. He leaned his head back onto the soft cushions, and closed his eyes in thought.

Coming home everyday to an empty house was a little harder than he had imagined. He wanted to come home- not just open the door to an empty building. It was depressing, and not to mention suffocating. He had so much time to himself that he thought he was going crazy. He was all alone from dawn to dusk, and it scared him. He feared coming home, but he made a promise that he would by the end of the day, and he always did.

Everybody needs a home.

Where was his home?

 

✍  a u t h o r 's   n o t e

Finally done the first chapter! I know some of you guys have been really anticipating this, so I'm sorry for the wait. I wanted to take some time and write this chapter the way I imagined it to be. 

This story is definitely more... mature(?), in comparison to Next Stop: Insanity.

I hope you guys enjoyed! ♡