Warning: mild swearing

“5:30 am” flashed in bright green as the screech of the alarm clock reverberated off the walls of Jongin’s bedroom.  A long arm reached out from his cave of blankets to stop the alarm’s nagging sound. He peeled the blankets off of his body and was immediately greeted by the cold air.

The bottoms of his bare feet touched the cement floor as he rose from the bed; the floor felt like ice prickling his skin. Jongin moved quietly to not wake his younger sister whom he shared the bedroom with. Darkness occupied the room, yet Jongin had no trouble finding the clothes he had set out the night before.

He had just finished getting dressed when his mother entered the cold room.

“Are you ready? We need to catch the metro before it leaves.” She said with a weary voice. Her eyes glanced over to her daughter who was sound asleep on the small mattress beside Jongin’s bed. A yellow blanket was draped over the bed’s edge almost meeting the floor. Jongin’s mother cocked her head at him and pointed at the blanket.

Jongin looked towards his sister and understood. He walked up to the mattress and adjusted the blanket so it was once again covering its owner. His sister immediately cuddled up to its warmness with her eyes still closed. Jongin grinned and smoothed a hand over the young one’s hair before leaving the room with his mother.

The two quickly made their way to the metro station a few blocks away from their housing division. It was around 6 am by the time they made it to the crowded station. Men and woman who had been working at the factories of Anein for years awaited the metro alongside Jongin and his mother. Tired eyes and slumped shoulders occupied the platform.

Jongin looked down at his mother. She looked much like the others waiting for the metro. The light wrinkles of her copper skin were distinct under the flickering lights of the station. Jongin noticed the look on her face; it was a look he had become familiar with. He saw many people around his housing division wearing the same look; it was the same expression painted on the faces of the other men and woman standing on the platform.

It was the look of waiting, Jongin concluded.

Not just waiting for a metro to arrive or for the sun to rise, they were waiting for something else. Something they had been waiting years for.  Jongin couldn’t yet understand exactly what it was they were waiting for, but it became apparent to him that it was something that Jongin’s mother and father were in desperate need of.

Jongin’s mother smiled up at him while he was still deep in thought, “Are you cold?” she rubbed her son’s back to warm him up.

“I’m okay, Mom.” His words turned white in the icy air and he shuddered despite himself.

His mother laughed lightly, the wrinkles around her lips grew deeper. She held her son close, “Don’t worry, it’s warmer in the factory.” She whispered to him.

His mother was right. Once inside the factory he felt as though he had walked into an oven. Sweat surfaced on Jongin’s skin underneath the layers of clothes he had put on earlier to protect himself from the cold. Their protection was no longer needed as he bent over a conveyer belt in the heat of the factory throwing hot steel into trays of water. Steam rose up from the water causing large drops of sweat to slide down Jongin’s face and nestle on the contours of his neck.

Jongin wiped the sweat beads away, and took a deep breath; the air filling his lungs was thick and dusty. There was no clock in the factory, so Jongin had no idea when his break was or when he would be getting ready to head home. He stood in the the same spot, making the same repetitive movement for hours while sweat continued to drip into his eyes. The steel was heavy and he could feel a bit of its scalding heat even while wearing gloves.

He wondered how anyone could do this day in and day out. Poor Mom. He frowned thinking about his mother working in such awful conditions. Her againg body didn't deserve this much physical burden. If his mother’s job was this tedious and draining he could only imagine how bad his father’s job was. Jongin scowled at the thought.

Jongin continued working diligently despite the heat and the ache in his back.

A large poster hung on the wall across from him. It was a copy of the many posters that were found scattered over the cities of Nation4. The nation’s motto was printed under the illustration of the most powerful man of the nation. A man Jongin was taught to admire since he was born.

In the illustration, the man’s black eyes looked toward the sun, the symbol of a bright future. Under this man’s reign, Nation4 was the most powerful nation on Mitra-382, and it was expected to stay that way.

Jongin had heard the motto over a thousand times while growing up in Nation4. “Believe, obey, fight.” Jongin recited the motto under his breath. Another drop of sweat slid down his cheek as the words passed his lips; the fringe of his hair was soaked and laid against his damp forehead.

Believe, obey, fight...for what?. Jongin mindlessly dropped another plate of steel into a tray. A larger amount of steam filled the air around him. He could see the faces of his family within the rising steam. They wore that same look he had become so used to. Jongin scowled, he didn't ever want to see that expression on anyone he loved ever again.

Jongin watched as the steam faded away along with the faces of his family. He stared down into the tray’s water; his reflection looked back at him with tired eyes. His facial expression reminded him of theirs. Sweat drops fell from his face and distorted the image in the water. Jongin became furious and slapped the water disfiguring his relection entirely.  

"Hey!" a man who had seen Jongin yelled from across the room. "Stop ing around and get your back to work newbie!!"

Jongin turned away from the man. His eyes flickered back up at the poster. Believe, obey, fight...for Mom, for Dad, for baby sis . I'll do it for them. I'll do it.

He threw yet another plate of steel into the water. The steam rose up once more, it faded away slowly without the faces of Jongin's family appearing. However, within the last lingering wisps of steam that rose from the water Jongin could see the face of another person. A face with round eyes and heart shaped lips. 

Short update again. (Sorry ;A;) I hope you guys undertstand the messages I'm trying to convey with my writing. Next chapter will be a bit longer & Kyungsoo-related and then after that should be  a lot longer since it'll be about the exams!! :D Which should be more interesting^^ Thanks for reading and subscribing. I actually appreciate it a lot. Like ya'll don't even know. *tears* [FYI I edit all the photos in these chapters and I made that crap poster you see above, (that's the poster Jongin was looking at)] 3/18/13