Bittersweet Memories (A Stray Kids Short Story Collection)

Scavenger Hunt VII

     It wasn't like Seungmin hadn't ever visited Korea since he moved away. His parents tried to make it a yearly trip, staying for around two weeks at a time. But no matter how many times Seungmin stepped into the airport, signs and chatter all around him, cool air coming in from the entrance, there was one thing that would never change.

     The feeling that he had come back home.

     Seungmin used to beg his parents to send him to Korea alone. Now, that adventure was his. And he handled it pretty well, if he did say so himself. He converted his currency and called a cab, having a very specific destination in mind. The jetlag hadn't hit him quite yet so Seungmin was determined to get as much done as possible before sleep pulled him away.

     Five years ago. That was when his parents had written the fifth hint. This scavenger hunt had been in the making for at least five years. For all he knew, this entire hunt could be his birthright (adopted right? child right?) Seungmin had a hard time wrapping his head around it all. But it explained why none of the hints were numbered. His parents wouldn't have been able to predict how many there would be.

     The cab dropped Seungmin at the parking lot of a certain building. It was massive, the grounds filled with people running to and fro, many leaving for the day.

     Seungmin stood against the pillar in front of the building, watching the latter. His eyes spotted the man he was looking for and he made himself visible in front of the entrance, waiting to be noticed.

     The man blinked several times seeing Seungmin and rushed forward with wide eyes. "Seungmin!"

     Seungmin grinned, putting his words on hold to envelop the man in a hug.

     "Hi, Channie hyung. Surprised?"

     The Bang family were long-time friends of the Park family (plus a Kim Seungmin, of course.) Seungmin had known Chan for most of his life. It was always a running joke in the family that when Seungmin had first gotten adopted, Chan, only eight years old at the time, had thought his birthday wish for a younger brother had finally gotten fulfilled.

     Their friendship just worked, like an already assembled puzzle that could never break apart. Leaving Chan was the thing that hurt the most in moving away from Korea. Regular video calls and trips to Korea could never fill in that void.

     "My parents never told me you were coming," Chan said, sitting behind the wheel in his car while Seungmin climbed into the passenger seat.

     "Yeah, this was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing." Once again, Seungmin didn't mention the scavenger hunt. It wasn't of priority right now with the thrill of being back.

     "I'll call my parents and tell them you're here so they can prepare the guest room."

     "Oh please, you act as if you guys even touch those rooms and they're not permanently reserved for the Park family," Seungmin teased. "Anyways, how's your producing job?"

     "I'm a co-producer right now, but the people I work with usually appreciate my output," Chan said. "I might just get to produce a full song in the future album the company's going to release."

     "There's my music producer friend being a success," Seungmin said with a playful nudge. "You should show me some of your work!"

     "You're asking me to leak unreleased music to you?"

     "Exactly!"

     Chan chuckled. "So your parents are still on their trip of theirs?"

     "They're on that trip forever!"