A clothing store was the only place Suho could think of going on such a beautiful day in San Francisco. He should have contemplated going to a park, or for a continued stroll around the city, but he opted for an indoor activity.

He regretted his decision the most, right now.

~

"Why are you so keen on going to America for vacation? You could go anywhere else, so why San Francisco?" his mother questioned him, following closely behind his footsteps as he tried to pack.

"I liked it out there, I like seeing all the different faces, it's exciting. Do I really need to explain?"

He was frustrated with her continual questions since the day he found out he would be allowed a week long vacation from the office. She wanted him to go to an exotic island, fraternize with the locals and maybe bring back some island beauty. His mother, a very rare case in their country, had some twisted fantasy of him marrying a beautiful girl from some tropical place, and giving her foreign looking grand babies. He contributes her fantastical thoughts to her old high school friend who constantly brags about her own exotic daughter in law.

Korean girls were just fine as a preference, so he would appreciate it greatly, if she would stop trying to make him the odd man in Korea.

"All you're going to do is hang out in that Korean town all day. You should just stay in Korea for all that," she muttered, folding a shirt of his and putting it in his suitcase.

He laughed at her tone, she was really something else but his father married her anyway. "I promise to go to the beach and look at all the pretty girls there, ok?"

That should not have pleased his mother as much as it did, but she gave him a tight hug anyway, "And talk to them too, ok?"

~

Suho coughed, trying in vain to clear his throat of the dust that had lodged it's way inside. Testing the movement of his eyes, he cracked them open. Right before him, dust floated in intricate designs, illuminated by the light the hole above him allowed in. By some miracle he could move all his limbs, as he continued to test his bodily functions by wiggling his fingers and moving his legs.

He tried to sit up next, feeling his bones creak with the forced movement. He groaned, not allowing himself to lay still despite the physical feeling of his body pleading otherwise. It was important that he find out what was happening. All he knew was that it was dim where he had landed, and it smelled like wet concrete all around. Faintly, he could hear someone whimpering near him, but he couldn't see where the sound was coming from.

The only thought continuously bouncing around his head was that he had to get out of there.

~

The flight to San Francisco was a long one made easy by his first class status. He loved flying Korea Air since they gave sublime service as his review of the airline said every time he left one on their website.

However, landing in the SFO airport, having to use his practiced English, getting a taxi, and having to trust that the man will get him to his reserved hotel, was another story.

A stressful one.

It was one of the reasons he hated traveling alone, yet he insisted on doing so for this vacation. He just wanted to get away, be on his own without his parents breathing down his neck. It would have been alright if he invited a friend to come along, but their schedules were not consistent with his.

And he absolutely had to go. There was no way he was going to wait for one of their schedules to free up just so he could enjoy a vacation. His muddled mind needed to not think about work, numbers and words, speeches he had to formulate and people he wanted to fire.

In all honesty, he needed a relaxing vacation on some tropical island, with some beautiful girl feeding him grapes and coconut juice. Just the kind of vacation his mother would love to hear him going on. But he avoided that all because of her "never give up, never surrender" approach at pestering him to marry foreign.

Those thoughts were all for naught now, he had chosen America, had already flown 15 hours across the grand Pacific Ocean to get there, so he might as well make the best of it. Alone.

~

The whimpering seemed to get louder by the time he had manage to pull himself onto his hands and knees, breathing deeply as if he had just fought and lost a fight. There were small cuts lining his fingertips, cuts he couldn't even feel with all the other aches rippling through his body. He gave another heralding cough, spitting out bits of sandy debris that made its way inside. Suho kept himself still, noticing the whimpering had stopped. Whoever that was seemed to be giving up and that thought gave him chills. He couldn't willingly witness the sound of someone giving up on life without trying to help.

"Hey," he groaned out, cringing at the sound of his scratchy voice. He began crawling left, knees screaming at the jagged rocks as he moved forward.

~

Walking around an unknown place, shades on and head held high, made Suho feel more important than walking into the company every morning for the last three years.

Though he was alone, he didn't feel it as he took to the streets with the rest of the patrons, native and tourist alike. It was a beautiful day, sun high in the midday sky and a light breeze keeping everyone moving forward with its refreshing flow. He wanted to open his arms and give an exaggerated sigh about how he was free finally, but of course he decided against making a spectacle of himself while walking down the crowded street in a foreign land.

He didn't know where he wanted to go but the clothing store he was walking pass caught his attention. Knowing that he wanted to do some shopping, he halted, turning to go back towards the store.

It was a boutique selling only women clothing. Just what he needed since he wanted to purchase a few silk scarves for his mother. Though, she would probably wonder, and make known her thoughts to him, about his maybe, possibly, hopefully purchasing clothing for a particular woman he may have met while away. That answer would a humongous no, not that she wouldn't be expecting such an answer, she just manages to keep her hope alive 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 4 weeks a month, 12 months a year, for 3 years since he reached the age of a legal adult.

A small smile made its way to his lips as he threaded his fingers through the fabric. Thoughts of his mother's perseverance always brought a smile to his face, but only when he was away from her.

It was an odd relationship.

"Can I help you with anything, sir?" Suho looked over to the person now standing near him, thankful that he knew what she said even though he wasn't paying rapt attention. He assumed she was a worker in the store, judging by her all black attire and neatly done make up. Though he knew he was in America, s