home is with you

⇨ ᎬᏢᏆᏚᎾᎠᎬ 1

after a month of staying at green home, you concluded many things about the run down building.

one, it was a strange place, mainly because of the attendants you encountered on a daily bases. there was the woman a floor below you, who complained almost daily about not having enough food and threatening to resort to a less respectable job. her clicking heels echoed in your ears each time you awoke to her returning during the early hours of the morning, wondering where she ventured off to so late in the night. there was also the man in the same hall as you, who although appeared kind, made your stomach feel heavy with dread every time he smiled at you. something felt off about him, but you couldn't exactly treat someone with disrespect because of a feeling. you made it your mission to avoid him though, along with the angry old man who ran the grocery store. he just simply pissed you off.

two, it was old, with chipped paint and flickering lights. you doubted the building has had a proper renovation for years, and any 'fixes' they made lasted a month at most. you couldn't complain though. the rent was cheap, far better than any other apartment complex located in the city, so you kept your mouth tightly shut at the inconveniences thrown at you.

and three, it was home. or at least, better than the one you used to live in.

the first several days at your new apartment were spent cleaning. thoroughly. you scrubbed for hours at the counter stains and the dirt hidden in dark corners, using rag after rag until you were satisfied with the result. eun-hyuk and eun-yoo would come by to help when they had the time, bickering endlessly over what was the correct way to sweep and mop the floors. you remembered laughing at the scene, recalling a similar conversation back in their previous home. despite their argument however, it felt normal, giving you the belief that things could go back to the way they were before everything fell apart.

once you deemed your living space clean enough, you began the lengthy process of unpacking your things and decorating the small room. you took a quick trip to the grocery store on the first floor to fill your fridge and cabinets with as much food as you could afford to buy, feeling better knowing you wouldn't starve to death or have to rely on prepacked ramen. as for decorating, you underestimated the amount of time it would take to situate yourself. you had only two boxes, one filled with pictures and trinkets you couldn't part with and another filled with whatever clothes you were able to grab on your way out. your lack of possessions resulted in the barren space of your apartment, absent of any special touch besides the photos you stuck to the walls and your ballet supplies tucked in the corner. you stepped back to take in the entirety of the room, the hollow space reflecting the uncomfortable feeling in your chest. well, it wasn't perfect, but you couldn't be picky with what you had.

by the end of the week you were finally settled in, and you figured it'd be the perfect time to begin looking for jobs. of course, with your scholarship to the ballet school, you didn't have to pay for tuition or any other school expenses, but you still needed money in order to pay for the bills of your new home. it took a lot of searching, and a lot of nerve wracking interviews, but you were finally able to secure a job lenient enough to pay well and give you time to attend the school when needed.

over time you found yourself enjoying the out of date building you now lived in. sure it was difficult at times, with lights suddenly going out or the water being too cold for your baths. but the siblings right next door made up for the misfortune of your predicament. every morning you'd go over to their apartment and help make breakfast, the three of you eating together at the small table between the kitchen and living room. you were over at their place so often you might as well have lived there, lounging in eun-yoo's room or sitting in silence at the kitchen table as eun-hyuk read through his medical books. you were happy, and you began to think that perhaps things would be okay. pretty soon, you'd forget about the poorly reconstructed vase you had left behind.