Chapter Text
“Yeosang, you’re 16 now, right?” his mother asked, not lifting her eyes from her laptop.
“Yes, Eomma. My birthday was last month.”
“Mm, right,” his mother said absently, her nails clacking rapidly across the keyboard. “Have you requested your transcript yet? We need to send that in.”
Yeosang furrowed his brow. “Eomma… I don’t start applying to colleges until my senior year. I’m going to be a junior.”
“Yes, I know that,” his mother huffed. “It’s for your new school. I asked you to get your transcript last week, remember?”
“My… My what?”
“Your new school. Don’t act like we didn’t tell you we’re moving, stop being difficult.”
“I… We’re moving? When?”
His mother rolled her eyes. “Do you even have a brain up there, or is it all air?”
“I, I’m sorry, I just-”
“We’re moving at the end of the summer. I’m starting a new job in September, but we’ll get there in August so you can start school in time. I’m doing the paperwork now, and I need your transcript.”
Yeosang just gaped at her.
“Don’t just sit there! Email the school’s office! And close your mouth, you look like a fish.” His mother sighed sharply. “Ridiculous.”
Yeosang snapped his jaw shut, reaching for his laptop.
“Ah, Eomma?”
“What.”
“Um, where are we moving?”
“Seoul.”
“Seoul… In Korea?”
“Yes, obviously,” his mother said, curling her lip. “Where else is Seoul?”
“But Eomma… I… I…”
“What? Stop stuttering, just say it.”
“I don’t want to move to Korea,” Yeosang said softly.
His mother made a sound of annoyance. “See, this is why I didn’t tell you! I knew you were going to be difficult about it.”
“So you didn’t tell me?”
“Don’t talk back,” his mother snapped. “You’re going, whether you like it or not.”
“But Eomma-”
“You don’t have a choice. You can’t stay here alone, and your father and I are going, so you’re going too.”
“But Eomma, can’t I-”
“If you can find a way to stay here legally, be my guest. This paperwork is an inconvenience, and it’d be nice to have you out of my hair when I start my new job.”
Yeosang tried not to let the sting show on his face. He pressed his lips together and stood up, scooping up his bag.
“Where are you going?”
“To my room. To get out of your hair.”
His mother scoffed. “Whatever.”
Yeosang trudged up the stairs, closing the door to his room firmly behind himself. He set down his bag and flopped onto his bed, taking a few shaky breaths to calm himself. He pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts, hovering over his aunt’s name. She was alwaYeosang busy, working more often than not, but she always told him to call if he needed anything. After a few more moments of hesitation, he pressed the button. The phone rang five times before she answered; when the line connected, Yeosang heard some fumbling sounds and the honking of a car.
“Hello?” he said cautiously. “Gomo?”
“Ah, Yeosangie! What a surprise!”
There was more honking, and Yeosang pulled the phone away from his ear slightly.
“Sorry, is now a bad time?”
“No, no,” his aunt Eunju said. “I’m just in a patch of traffic on my way to work. What would you like to talk about, Joka?”
“Ah… Did you hear that we’re moving?”
“Moving? Oh, to Dallas? Your Appa said he was considering it a while back, yes.”
“Dallas?” Yeosang said, furrowing his brow. “No… To Seoul.”
“Seoul?! Really? When?”
“Next month.”
“Next month! My goodness, that must’ve come as quite the surprise. How do you feel about it?”
“Uh… Well, that’s kind of why I called. I… I don’t really want to go, and Eomma said I didn’t have to if I could figure something else out, so-”
“Of course you can stay with me,” his aunt interrupted. “It’s not even a question. The house is a bit full right now, but you can share with Yunho and Jongho, no problem. And since we’re in the same school district, you won’t even have to worry about transferring, you’ll just have to update your address. When do you want to move in?”
Yeosang let out a breathy sigh of relief. “Thank you, Gomo. Thank you so much. Maybe a few days before school starts?”
“Sounds good. You let me know what I have to sign, and I’ll sign it. You should text your cousins to let them know! They’ll be so excited. I know we live close, but we don’t see each other nearly enough. Well, you see Yunho at school but-”
His aunt was cut off by more honking. Yeosang winced.
“-You get the idea. It’ll be great to have you. Maybe you can help Yunho out with his homework, too. I think he’s falling a bit behind. I offered to get him a tutor, but- Oh, no you don’t! This is my lane. That’s right, don’t cut me off! -Sorry, Yeosangie. Everyone on the roads are awful today.”
“I’ll let you go, then,” Yeosang said. “Thank you again, Gomo. I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Bye bye! -Oh, you motherf-”
Yeosang covered a laugh as he hung up. Auntie Eunju was the polar opposite of his parents, that was for sure. His mother probably wouldn’t be delighted about this arrangement, but at least she’d be happy that he wasn’t her problem anymore. He got to his feet, steeling himself for the conversation to come, and headed back downstairs.