Chapter Text
If there was a word to describe Seungmin, it would be unfortunate. It wasn’t that he had an illness, maybe a little anaemic, but nothing serious. It also wasn’t the fact that he didn’t have anyone to love him, in fact, Seungmin was sure the affection he received during his childhood was enough to last anyone else a lifetime, despite the absence of a mother. Seungmin had even been blessed with good looks and decent height, so what exactly made him unfortunate?
Perhaps it was the fact that his dad, the major pillar support in his life, had died in a car crash when he was only 16 years old.
Emotionally, he was a wreck, mourning and grieving over the loss of his loved one. However it still seemed okay at first. His dad was had a stable income and left a considerably huge amount of money for the both of them to survive, he had many loving relatives that took the both of them in with open heart and minds.
Or so he thought. His adoptive uncle took all the money for himself and starved him and his brother, Jeongin, of all nutritious food, only giving them minimal money to live on. Those days they only ate ramen for two meals a day, if they were lucky they could add some egg. They had to sleep on creaky second hand beds and walk to school as they could not afford transportation. Their uncle had abused the both of them, throwing slurs like “stray” or just any degrading term for orphan was said.
Seungmin obviously could not take it anymore, last straw blown when his Uncle had called Jeongin a pig just for wanting to eat some rice. Seungmin wanted the both of them to get out, fast. But he did not have any money and all his relatives that invited him with open arms all turned their backs on them, ignoring their phone calls and even going as far as pretending they don’t know them.
Seungmin weighed his possibilities, deciding he should earn money and move out once he was legal. He dropped out of high school and worked many jobs, including delivery driver to retail to barista, just to provide for him and his brother. It wasn’t really a shame though, Seungmin’s grades had always been one of the hopeless cases, no matter how much he studied. The only subjects he could pass at are Biology and English, so working would obviously be a better option. Although his back and legs ache an abnormal amount, or he faints nearly every week due to exhaustion. And that’s a secret he would never tell Jeongin.
The exact same midnight Seungmin turned 18, they moved out of that hell hole into a rented one room flat Seungmin had worked his ass for. The flat was small, barely enough to walk without tripping on something, but it was a lot better than what they had to leave in previously. Both Seungmin and Jeongin were grateful enough they could have seperate rooms and could have some peace, a luxury they never enjoyed after his dad passed.
“Jeongin, I made breakfast so eat some before going to school. Study hard, Bye!” Seungmin nagged once more and Jeongin groaned from his bed, begging him to leave already. Seungmin chuckled, grabbing his cream coloured tote bag and headed to work.
Today, Seungmin was excited to go to work. His boss had promised him a pay raise if the publishers liked his work. He was working as a part time editor for a small publishing company. The pay wasn’t much, it never is, but it was enough to sustain him and his brother for a considerably easy job. At the thought of a higher salary, Seungmin walked faster than before, as though today was his first day at work. Oh, if only he knew it would be his last.
“Wait, did you say I was fired?” Seungmin blanched. “Wasn’t the article good enough, I did everything they asked me to. I even did the design for the magazine just so I could have the bonus payment.”
“I’m sorry Mr Kim but it just wasn’t good enough. The publishers weren’t satisfied with it and they demanded for you to be fired, said they couldn’t afford to have a young and inexperienced worker like you. I will transfer this months pay to your account later tonight. Goodbye.” His boss had tried to reason with him, but Seungmin was furious. He swore he did everything that was asked for, and he knows that his boss had the biggest say in firing his employees . Seungmin glanced around, eyes settling on the cup of hot coffee on the table. He picked it up and splashed right on his boss’ face. He knew he shouldn’t have done it, that he should have just ignored him and walked away, saving him from potential problems but he also didn’t care. If he was going to be fired, at least make it right.
“Hey Kim Seungmin!” His boss seethed, eyes burning red with fury. Seungmin would’ve been scared if it was in a different situation, but it was hard to take his boss seriously when he was jumping around, using his handkerchief in an attempt to cool himself down. “Idiot,” Seungmin muttered, chuckling and leaving the darned office, swearing never to come back again.
Seungmin trudged along the street of his neighbourhood under the broad sunlight, he was in deep shit. Sure, he still has his job as a barista, but it pays him less than $8 an hour, not even sufficient for him alone. “It’s okay Kim Seungmin, it's not like it’s your first time being fired so why are you so upset.” Seungmin patted himself on his head, trying to comfort himself out of his headspace.
It's times like these that Seungmin misses his dad the most. Everytime Seungmin had a difficult day, his dad would cook him his favourite meal. When Seungmin was angry, sparring that day would be extremely tough, allowing Seungmin to release his anger through Taekwondo. And when Seungmin was sad, his dad would listen to Seungmin’s rants and concerns through his sobs, holding him close till he falls asleep.
Enough with all the sentimental thoughts already. Seungmin slapped himself a few times lightly, picking up his pace as he considered the job options he had in mind. It was a shame, he really liked editing.
“Kim Seungmo!” A loud booming voice broke Seungmin out of his calculations. Seungmin knew that voice too well. He turned around to see his best friend waving enthusiastically at him, running to him at full speed. “Why are u here at this time of the day, did you get fired again?”
“Hey Jisung,” Seungmin chortled. “And yes, I did get fired again. The boss is dumb anyways. Threw hot coffee at him for firing me.”
Jisung clicked his tongue, putting his arm around Seungmin’s shoulder. “That’s my best friend. Never letting anyone bring you down,” he bragged, as if announcing it to the whole world. Reluctantly, the bluenette added , ”You can always come stay at my pla—”
“Jiji, stop. I’m not going to take advantage of you.” Seungmin frowned, tone stern. He started walking, leaving Jisung’s arm hovering awkwardly in the air, while he complained, “Yeah I knew you were going to say that. I promise you won’t be taking advantage of me, I’m just a nice person with a lot of money. Think about Jeongin, he said he wanted to live with me but you—“
“Jeongin said what?!” Seungmin raged, stopping in his tracks. Jisung glared at him. He had interrupted Jisung twice in a row. Apologetic but not, he continued saying what he wanted to say.
“I really need to lecture that brat again. Gosh, he never learns doesn’t he. Stop pouting, you little brat, it doesn’t suit you.” Jisung retracted his jutted lip, pressing his lips together in a firm line. Seungmin cooed, bringing his hands up gingerly to cup his fat cheeks, staring right into his huge, round eyes.
“Jiji, I know you only wish the best for me, but i can do this by myself. You don’t have to give me money for support, you being by my side is already enough.”
“Love you too! Now stop being sappy,” Jisung grinned through his squished cheeks. He wrapped their hands around Seungmin’s waist, snuggling into Seungmin’s arms. Seungmin beamed and circled his hands round Jisung’s neck. No words can ever describe how much Jisung means to him.
Seungmin was 14 when he first befriended Jisung. They were different. In school, everyone was scared of Seungmin. And for Jisung, he were scared of everyone. Jisung was bullied and always got teased for being a crybaby. When Seungmin could not tolerate it anymore, he sat beside Jisung during lunch break. Everyone was shock, including the teachers, but no one dare say anything in fear of Seungmin. The first lunch break was awkward, at least for Jisung, but as time went by, they found many common interests and became close like family. Oh, and Seungmin found out that Jisung was the second child of the CEO of Samsung, meaning they were filthy rich. But Seungmin didn’t care of course, he wasn’t there for the money and would never be. And Jisung, being Jisung, never once showed off or bragged about it.
WE ARE HIRING! LOOKING FOR; PART TIMERS WHO CAN WORK THE SHIFT FROM 9PM-5AM! Interested candidates can walk in for an interview here at any time after 6pm . Seungmin’s eyes brightened. He hastily checked his phone. 11pm. 2 February. Perfect timing. Beaming, he walked into the convenience store shouting, “I’m here for the job interview!”