But no one ever tells you that forever feels like home

The first sentence of the letter was very dry, not far from what he expected from university letters. Either way, that didn’t keep him from feeling utterly ecstatic from the black ink printed on a crisp white sheet of paper. His father had attended the same school, graduating with the top of his year. Though he was going to be in a different program, he really wanted to get into the man’s alma mater. Soo Kyung knew how much the place meant to his father, how everything started and ended in the beautiful city that never sleeps, the bright metropolis that allowed for him to shine brighter than any jewel. He knew he would never be able to live up to the reputation he left behind, but he was more than confident that he would enjoy the experience nonetheless.

Except, right now, he now had a problem.

“I’m telling you, there’s nothing wrong!”

“Then why haven’t you hung out with us lately?”

“Because I’m too busy stressing over this project to waste time away from it.”

“So, hanging out with your friends is now a waste of time? Well, I wouldn’t be surprised. As soon as you leave Korea, you probably wouldn’t bother to look back at us little people anymore, right?”

“... Where did you hear that from?”

“Are you kidding me?! Rumours have been going around that you’ve gotten into some prestigious program in New York. Were you ever going to tell us?”

“... I haven’t even made my decision about that.”

“Decision? Why not discuss this with us first?”

“Why are you so invested in whether or not I go?!”

“Because I don’t want to lose my best friend, which is exactly what has been happening!”

“That’s not true at all!”

“Then, why have you been around Chae Soo Kyung so much lately?”

“What about you?! You can’t accuse me of ditching you all the time when you have Yang Ji Min around you all the time. Have you ever thought that I happen to not want to be around her every time she’s around you?”

“Wha–?”

“Forget it. Get out of here. I don’t want to deal with you right now.”

“Fine.”

When your neighbours were usually inaudible, everyone almost forgot that the walls to the officetel weren’t that thick. If you spoke loud enough, you could hear people quite clearly. And if you were like Soo Kyung, whose ears were highly sensitive to sound, you could often make out full conversations, even frustrated sighs that sounded like they were on the verge of tears.

A knock came to his front door, and he opened it. He stood off to the side while his neighbour let out a tirade of jumbled words, expressing his emotional state. Sometimes, it got hard to listen to. Often the pronunciations would slur into each other and they would start sounding like very different things from what he might actually mean. That was why Soo Kyung usually stayed quiet until he was finished. By then, he would be able to make out everything he’s talking about and give him responses that would, hopefully, guide him to an answer he was searching for. And then Myung Soo crashes on the couch, tuckered out from the adrenaline that runs out through every word he speaks, leaving the living room as quiet as Soo Kyung’s head when he wills himself not to think anymore.

And then he feels empty.

Sitting all alone inside your head

Chapter 11: (head) space.

A/N: The phrase is from the song Through Glass by Stone Sour.