Chapter Text
4:00 AM Wake up.
4:30 AM Shower and Skin Care!
5:00 AM Go back to sleep
5:01 AM Realize that's not the life your parents left you and put on boots/overalls.
5:10 AM Drive Gator towards back of farm
5:30 AM Arrive at orange trees
5:35 AM Exit shed and begin pruning orange trees
7:00 AM Feed Dwaeji, Oppa, Peggy excess stocks
7:40 AM Finish making next batch of feed
8:00-8:30 AM Check orange trees for growth and pick Tangerines/Excess Clemintines
8:30 AM Load crates in truck
9:00 AM Leave for market
9:25 AM Arrive at market
9:45 AM Look for and talk with Wonwoo
(Produce Manager)
10:00-10:30 AM Shop!! <33
10:30 AM Leave market
11:00 AM Return to farm
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM Household chores/ winter prep
1:00-1:30 PM Head to town
/give excess oranges or excess produce to open food shelters
1:45 PM Pick up dog food for VeVe at dog mart.
2:00 PM Arrive at pharmacy
2:10 PM Get medication for Anemia/Anxiety etc...
2:30- 3:00 PM Get fresh bread from bakery
3:00 PM Head home
3:30-3:50 PM Arrive home and put away remaining groceries
4:00 PM Feed VeVe
4:30-6:00 PM Read/ Crotchet <3
6:00 PM Sit on porch and sing/hum to VeVe while watching the sunset
7:00 PM Complain about mosquitos
7:30 PM Start dinner
8:00 PM EAT!!!!
8:20 PM Call The8/Jun about produce
8:40 PM Watch fav. Entertainment show
9:20 PM Pre-sleep routine
10:00 PM
Lights Out
A Monday spent well, some would say. Seungkwan wasn't the most efficient with his schedule but at least he had one. As Seungkwan retraced the letter his eyes flickered to his ceramic clock.
9:40 PM
The overly formal black notecard, despite having smudged letters, left Seungkwan's mouth slightly agape. To Seungkwan's newly discovered knowledge his landlord had passed away and Seungkwan was to attend the funeral tomorrow. Seungkwan was to put away his daily chores to embrace the death of the man who owned his farms name but hadn't shown his face or offered Seungkwan the slightest bit of help.
No, that was a lie. The man allowed several farmers whom Seungkwan grew to trust to help Seungkwan pick oranges in the summer and winter, two of the harshes seasons for oranges. He also sent Seungkwan a healthy envelope every 2 months and Seungkwan was to ration that money like he rationed everything else.
Seungkwan was.... Grateful? Not for his landlord's death but for his life wasn't as chaotic as it could be due to the landlord taking care of most of the business and paperwork in relation to Seungkwan's farm. For him to pass away and Seungkwan to have only known him by a single eloquent signature.
Chwe~
Seungkwan labored for this man and received with occasional winter bonuses. Now he was expected to visit the man's corpse. It's fair. Since he didn't attempt to send a letter back to his landlord he can visit the man as he's put to his eternal rest.
So; from the delicate citrus air, to the whissful curls of his dog VeVe, and the somber feeling of isolation everyday Seungkwan lived life like he didn't have a million questions swarming his head. Everday felt like a step towards recovery, a recovery Seungkwan had no idea he was living.
Surely there was more to life than crocheting blankets for orphans and picking oranges at 8:00 in the morning. More importantly, where was Ma and Pa?
These insidious thoughts crept into Seungkwan's mind in the calm of the night. They made him anxious to the point he wouldn't sleep. He'd think about them on the drive to the local produce market and while waiting for fresh bread to bake.
Seungkwan was off the grid against his will and frankly it's starting to get boring...
—————————————————————————
My Eldest Vernon,
Time is pitiful. As my second line, my future and prestige you hold a legacy that no one else is capable of carrying. As my son your sole mission is to run this company. Do (INELIGIBLE)
I cultivated you to be my splitting image. I cultivated you to be greater than I could have ever been myself and you have yet to prove it to me. My death is an unfortunate miscalculation due to my past behavior. All sinners must pay for their sins, it is nature's way. I've taught you that nature is to be respected in spite of any greed. It is the only force that can bring our family to its demise and it is also (INELIGIBLE) so cherish it.
As I've told you besides managing several global companies we happen to have a small (INELIGIBLE). To protect his dying wish I offered to take care of his farm and (INELIGIBLE)
You are, under no circumstances to (INELIGIBLE) as in order to be granted my company and the stocks, bank accounts etc.. you are to promise your mother in return for (INELIGIBLE)
As my final wish, Your sister (INELIGIBLE). To gain access to my past treasures finish your first solo assignment and the rest is up for you to decide.
Congratulations,
~Chwe
"I know exactly how you feel. It's overwhelming, yes," Jeonghan says before scribbling into his notepad. Vernon held his tongue. Jeonghan took note of that too. Vernon was purposefully not speaking to him but that's fine. Anything to help his patient cope. His mother was paying a pretty penny for these sessions though so it be wiser for Vernon to speak up.
Vernon wasn't a classic case you could solve with medication or a simple 7 month session. Vernon is clinically diagnosed a Psychopath and happens to be the prime suspect in his father's death. That information will never be made public but Vernon’s cognitive functionality is second to none.
He wasn't severely neglected as a child but as he got older it got harder. Due to his emotions and actions being heavily regulated by his guardians as Vernon developed the skill of self awareness he became abnormally aware of what he himself is capable of.
He's insane but self aware and insecure then again, what rich people aren't?
In Vernon's latest sessions, Vernon himself decided he wasn't capable of purposely hurting someone. Even if he acted on it he wouldn't believe himself to be violent in nature.
Jeonghan chose to believe this and Vernon significantly grew from this. He may not be capable of doing what the rare cases of psychotic individuals do but as his mental stability decreases....
Well, psychopath or not Jeonghan was going to get a clear answer from Vernon and violently press the man to continue their weekly visits. Plus, he made a bet with another psychologist that whoever clears their patient first has to pay for their next date...
Jeonghan didn't plan on losing.
"The investigation had already begun so I've been told. You begin running your fathers company immediately after your fathers funeral tommorow. If the note doesn't get deciphered within the next 48 hours your interpretation of the letter determines your future. You have nothing you want to say about any of this information," Jeonghan says calmly.
Vernon remained quiet his eyes trained on the burnt note before him. That demon wasn't one to lie, especially to him. He told everything to Vernon in details so painstainkingly accurate Vernon's own interpretation of the letter wouldn't be any good to his father. Whether here or not corners shouldn't get cut. The great thing about his father is he would never leave behind a painting without someone to pick up the brush and sign it for him. Someone like Vernon, the only person to understand him, could pick up the brush with ease. The mix between Kanji and traditional Hangul handwriting was throwing Vernon off. Something wasn't right about the note and it was as clear as the smudged symbols and burn marks themselves.
"It's fake," Vernon says now meeting Jeonghan's eyes.
"Denial is a common emotion to feel after the death of someone significant in one's life and considering his body was almost unrecognizable makes it even harder to believe the note to be real," Jeonghan sighs and Vernon instantly looks back at the stool that separated the two.
"On this new journey, let's completely erase your dad from the the new you. You're not one who holds their family close so this should be easy. You may find what I'm about to say interesting but then again you are an interesting person yourself, right Vernon," Jeonghan smiles at Vernon who now held his eyes again.
"Not only has your psychosis gotten worse this month but some of your old habits are kicking back in like not talking when we meet."
His father was dead.
The funeral is tomorrow.
He is now one of the biggest competitors in Korea's global economy.
He's the prime suspect in his father's death.
"He's not dead."
Vernon swallows his saliva as Jeonghan's eyes suck him dry of pride. Then the ringing he had recently been hearing grew louder. He couldn't focus on the sweet looking man in front of him but he could focus on himself. He was 23, and he dyed his hair platinum because he felt bad for his father who told him about his hair graying and how it made him look old.
He hated confrontations so he held his tongue as often as he could to avoid them. When he got angry or annoyed he learned it's best to mistake the feelings for confusion and think through it as if it were a personal equation fit for someone else to solve.
Vernon twinkled like another window that paralleled the city streets except his window had an extra clean sheen and was polished as regularly as he allowed. Vernon had everything he could ever imagine at his own fingertips but had the urge to keep his hands clean. He idely listened to his father's insults and business conjecture yet to be as impactful as his father's words meant he could either run away from it all or live with the constant pressure that being better than his father means succumbing to his psychotic nature.
"I want you to try and find a new hobby. Having a new experience could do you some good. Try something with the intent of trying not to get closer to yourself now. Something that helps someone or something else. Whether that be helping the Earth or simply helping a friend. Let's focus on the indirect skills of the version of you, you're trying to become."