Chapter Text
“Seonghwa get down here! You cannot be late for your train!”
“Ok, ok, I’m coming!” he replies, begrudgingly zipping up his suitcase and grabbing his travel bag.
Seonghwa trudges down the rickety stairs of their house and drops his bags by the front door before making his way to the kitchen. He slides his usual chair out from the table and plops down into it, just in time for his mom to put a plate of breakfast in front of him.
“Thanks.”
His mom places a gentle hand on his head and smiles down at him, “Of course, I wouldn’t want you to be hungry before your trip.”
Seonghwa rolls his eyes and throws his head back with a whine,“Eommaaaa, do I really have to go?”
“Yes, Seonghwa,” his mom began as she moved around the kitchen cleaning up her post-cooking mess. “You haven’t visited them in ages, they miss you!”
“Then we can just go see them for Chuseok this year! That way they get to see the both of us,” Seonghwa replies as he tries to convince his mom this is all a bad idea.
Don’t get him wrong; Seonghwa loves his grandparents and he misses them a lot. Honestly, his mom is right. He hasn’t been to their house for nearly nine years . But that doesn’t mean it’s where he should have to spend his last free summer before college. Not to mention it’s five hours away !
Five hours away from his friends, his favorite places, and the comfort of his own room. All he wanted to do was spend his summer with his closest buddies before they all went off to college, and inevitably their own “grown-up” lives; he felt like this was the last summer that they could act like kids and have fun before the responsibilities of the real world came crashing down on them.
“Please, stop trying to argue against this. You’re going and that’s final,” His mom’s rebuttal pulls him out of his thoughts. A pleading look is all Seonghwa sends her way.
“Look,” she begins, walking back over to him. “You know I’m not doing this to punish you. I’m your mother and I know what’s best for you. You need this.”
Well, Seonghwa can’t exactly argue with that. His final year of high school had been a lot. The stress of keeping his grades up, attending senior events, applying to colleges, preparing for graduation, and taking his CSAT –which he passed with flying colors– really weighed on him. It took a substantial amount of effort for Seonghwa to stay afloat, but he did. Unfortunately, all that stress had some lasting effects on him, and it seems like his mom noticed as well.
She gently cups his face in her hands. “You haven’t been quite yourself,”she says with a sad smile. “I can’t let my sweet boy lose his spark, so I want you to have the opportunity to disconnect from everything here and just…relax.”
Seonghwa raises his hand to lay on top of his mother’s, “I know, and thank you Eomma. I don’t know what I’d do without you, I love you.”
“I love you too,” she smiles and squeezes his cheeks. “Now, eat your breakfast and let’s get going. We don’t want you to miss your train.”
A chuckle escaped his lips as he pries his mom’s hand off his face. He knew there was no getting out of this, so he complied and started eating breakfast.
🌊
Seonghwa spent most of the ride to the train station listening to his mom ramble about how much fun it had been to grow up in the town his grandparents resided in. Though, while listening to her stories he found it hard to believe the small town held the same charm she seemed so proud of–he was pretty sure there were more people in his senior class than there were in the whole town.
That was part of the reason he was so resistant to going back. It was true that he enjoyed his time there when he was younger, but that was when he was entertained by making mud pies and searching for bugs outside. He was much older now and he had changed a lot. There’s no way such a small town had changed along with him.
They arrived at the train station much sooner than he would have liked. His mom parked and helped him gather his things from the back of the car.
“Well, I guess it’s time to say goodbye.”
Seonghwa nods at his mother’s words and pulls her into his arms. “I’m gonna miss you so much, Eomma. Are you sure you’ll be fine here by yourself?”
It had been just the two of them his whole life. His dad was never in the picture, so this caused Seonghwa to develop a strong sense of protection over his mom. Thus, he wasn’t completely on board with leaving her alone at their house all summer.
“I’ll miss you too Tokki, but I promise I’ll be okay. Your mom can take care of herself,” Her gentle voice did wonders to reassure Seonghwa.
“I know, but it's just-”
“No, it’s nothing. Don’t worry about me. Have fun, enjoy your summer. You deserve it.”
Seonghwa sighs at that and hugs his mom tighter. They say their last goodbyes and his mom shoos him off as she continues to pester him about “not missing his train”. Seriously, what is it with her and thinking he’s gonna miss the train?
🌊
The five-hour train ride was about as uneventful as one would expect. Seonghwa spent his time napping, playing animal crossing on his switch, and browsing the Lego website to choose the set his mom promised she would purchase for him as consolation for basically shipping him away for the summer. He probably would have gone without the added incentive, but he could never deny another Lego set.
After the train has fully stopped, Seonghwa takes his time gathering his things and making his way off. As he walks out of the small train station, he observes his surroundings. There are a few people who got off the train with him, and there are even fewer people mulling about near the station. Another thing he notices is that it’s much hotter here than it was back home. The heat practically sticks to him as he looks around at some of the small buildings until he finally sees it, the ocean.
Oh yeah, did he mention that his grandparents live on the coast?
That’s definitely something positive Seonghwa can take from this whole situation; He loves the beach. The way the sand feels beneath his feet, the calming sounds of the ocean, sunbathing – Seonghwa loves it all.
“Tokki! Over here!”
Seonghwa looks up as he hears a familiar voice, slightly blushing at the nickname being yelled for all to hear. Nevertheless, a smile spreads across his face at the sight of his grandparents standing a short distance away next to their small car. His grandma is smiling ear to ear, one hand cupped around her mouth and the other up in the air, waving at Seonghwa. His grandpa stands next to her with a smile equally as big.
Seonghwa excitedly waves back and strides towards them with a new spring in his step. Despite the many oppositions he had to coming here, he can’t deny that he missed his grandparents a lot more than he thought.
Once he reaches the couple, he attempts to greet them with a bow. “Oh, none of that. Come here!” his grandma says. She pulls him upright and straight into her arms; Seonghwa returns the embrace with no hesitation and feels his grandpa's arms wrap around the both of them.
Immediately, Seonghwa’s built-up tension begins to melt out of him.
“Hey,” he lets out with a relieved sigh. With a final squeeze, his grandparents release him from their tight hold.
“Oh my goodness, look at you!” his grandma says as she holds onto the sides of his arms and leans back to get a full look at him.“You’ve grown so much, and you’re still so handsome.”
He was now much taller than both of his grandparents. His hair had grown to go just past his chin and a little further down the nape of his neck. He wasn’t one to brag, but he knew he wasn’t hard to look at.
“My genes are pretty strong aren’t they?”
Seonghwa lets out a laugh at his grandpa’s remark. “Thank you Grandma. You’re looking beautiful as always.”
She swats her hand at him in an effort to disregard his remark, “And you’re still far too kind.”
He gives his grandma another bright smile. His grandpa insists on putting Seonghwa’s stuff into the back of the car and urges him to hop in so they can go to the house and get him settled.
The house is only a short drive away from the train station. Seonghwa endures the run-of-the-mill “How have you been? How was school? What college are you attending?” questions, and does his best to answer with as much detail as possible.
As they get closer to the town, Seonghwa takes the time to look out the window. His grandmother is deep into a story, but her voice gets tuned out as he turns his attention to the place he’ll be spending the rest of his summer.
The main street is lined with various small shops and a few restaurants here and there. The bright colors and beachy decorations definitely give the town a sense of whimsy and fun. When he was younger he loved going into town with his mom and grandmother, usually leaving with at least one treat; his grandma could never resist his puppy dog eyes.
Seonghwa has a hard time remembering the specifics of each building and starts to feel slightly nervous about navigating the place on his own.
They drive a little further past the center of town and small houses come into view. Most are one story with few rooms, but a select few have an upper level. Further telling Seonghwa about the state of the town.
His attention is pulled away when he sees a decent-sized skate park. Seonghwa scrunches his eyebrows and frowns in confusion. That seems like an odd thing to have in a town he assumes contains mostly the elderly.
“We’re here!” Seonghwa’s grandfather says from the front seat, pulling into the small driveway next to the house.
There it is. The place Seonghwa spent many summers as a child. It’s much smaller than he remembers, but at that time everything seemed huge in his eyes.
After they’ve parked, he gathers his bags from the trunk and follows his grandparents as they walk through the front door of the quaint house.
It’s a little jarring how he immediately gets a feeling of home when he steps inside.
The place feels cozy and lived in. Trinkets, picture frames, and other knick-knacks fill the shelves. Random art hangs on the walls in the open area of the living room. There are various pillows and blankets on the worn-down couches and Seonghwa is already looking forward to taking long naps on the well-loved furniture.
“Let me show you to your room,” His grandma says, walking towards the back of the house.
She leads him down a small hallway adjacent to the kitchen and dining area. If he remembers correctly, his grandparents’ room is on the other end of the house. Good to know.
His grandmother opens the door to his room and allows him to step inside.
There’s not much to it. A full-size bed, a bedside table, a small dresser, and an even smaller closet. The walls are painted a pale, comforting blue and the bed looks extremely comfy. Perfect.
“I hope it’s ok,” she says with a nervous look on her face.
“It’s perfect grandma. Thank you,” Seonghwa replies, doing his best to send her a reassuring smile.
The nervousness leaves her face as she smiles wider. “Oh you’re welcome, I’m glad you’re satisfied. I’ll let you get settled in while I get started on dinner.”
Seonghwa nods and watches as she exits the room, shutting the door behind her.
🌊
Ok, maybe Seonghwa took settling in a little too seriously.
It had been three days since he arrived and he had yet to leave the house.
Other than curling up in his bed or watching TV on the couch, he spent most of his time on the swing on the back porch. From there he could just barely see the ocean, and a near constant breeze swept across the porch. The calming environment helped rid him of the residual anxiety and reluctance he had towards being here.
“Meow !”
Seonghwa looks down as he hears the soft meow to find his grandparents’ calico cat staring up at him.
“Hey Nari,” he greets her, bending down to lift her into his lap.
Nari has been around since he was little; it took some time for the two to refamiliarize themselves, but when she wasn’t trailing behind his grandma, she was with Seonghwa.
He began to stroke her soft fur when the screen door swung open, startling him a little.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare ya.” His grandfather says, stepping onto the porch.
“It’s ok.”
“You’re grandma wanted me to send ya to the store for a few things.”
Seonghwa froze at his words. Going into town, all by himself? He hadn’t got the chance to ask one of his grandparents to show him around and refresh his memories of the place. It couldn’t be too difficult to figure out where to go, but the idea of it was a little daunting.
Despite his many reservations about the request, he would never try to argue against his grandpa. Plus, he would do anything his grandma asked of him in a heartbeat.
“Uh-, Ok, I can do that,” The reluctance in his voice was clear.
His grandpa gave him a sympathetic look. “Hey, it won’t be too bad. It’ll give you a chance to look around and get used to the place again.”
Seonghwa nodded because his grandpa had a point. How was he ever gonna know his way around if he never left the house?
“Yeah, I know. I’m gonna freshen up then I’ll get going.”
“Perfect!” A smile spreads on his grandpa’s face as he heads back inside the house.
A defeated sigh left Seonghwa’s mouth, “Wish me luck Nari, I feel like I’m gonna need it.”
🌊
Seonghwa was starting to think he probably should’ve asked his grandpa exactly where the store was. How was it possible to get lost in a town of this size?
It didn’t help that most of the roads looked the same and there were few major landmarks he could use to help him navigate.
He could try to ask someone for help, but he was far too nervous to approach an unsuspecting stranger. Plus, he already felt a little dumb for getting lost in the first place.
The sidewalk he was walking on was one of the few in the town. He assumed that the fact he was on one was a good sign; surely this led to somewhere significant.
“Hey! Stop that board!”
Seonghwa hears a faraway yell. His head turns in search of the voice.
In the distance, there’s a boy barreling down the hill. His long legs carry him pretty fast, but not fast enough to catch up with the skateboard speeding ahead of him.
The same skateboard that was heading in Seonghwa’s direction, but also towards the middle of the street.
Seonghwa tries not to let confusion overtake him because he knows he needs to act fast.
Abruptly, Seonghwa leans down as the skateboard enters his proximity, and grabs it. A mere few seconds later, a car whizzes past his head and lets out a loud honk.
He gasps as he realizes how badly that could’ve gone. Where had that car even come from ?
The skateboard was now in a tight grip as he tried to calm his spiked nerves.
“Oh my god, thank you so much dude!”
Seonghwa flinches at the voice that was suddenly right next to him.
A boy with short – bright pink – hair, full lips, and a big smile stands before him. His features kind of make him look like a baby chick.
“Oh- uh,” Seonghwa fights to produce any words, still shaken up by the whole situation.
“You totally saved my board! That thing would’ve been toast if you didn’t grab it in time.”
Said board was still clutched in Seonghwa’s hands, he looks down as he realizes.
“Ah, I- I’m glad I could help.” A nervous smile spreads across Seonghwa’s face.
He’s never been good at interacting with new people. All throughout school he tended to make friends through others, never being the one to take the first step.
“Yeah, I really appreciate it. Now, can I get it back?” The boy let out a chuckle, raising his eyebrows as he motions to the skateboard.
Seonghwa feels his face warm up as he remembers he still has the board in a death grip. He passes the board into the boy's ring-clad hands in the least awkward way he could manage.
“Thanks,” he takes the board with a smile. “And thanks again for saving the board. See ya!”
Before Seonghwa could even think of a reply, the boy takes off past him, easily hopping onto the board and skating away.
For a moment, Seonghwa just stands there. So much had just happened in the last few minutes. All he wanted to do was go to the store, but instead, he almost got hit by a car and met a tall boy with pink hair.
If this was a sign of how his summer was gonna go, he better buckle up and prepare for the ride.