The Ashes of Stars

Chapter 3: Hyuna

"I've always liked that girl." she said thoughtfully, dabbing at her lipstick. "I bet she likes me, too. I like girls with bad attitudes."

 I snorted. "I would say that isn't true if I wanted to defend my best friend's honor, but I'm not that good a liar." I stretched out my legs before me and leaned forward, feeling the stiffness of my body grown taut. "What's the very important news you had to tell me anyway?"

"Oh yeah, about that." She suddenly flashed a grin. She took a deep breath as if bracing for pain and said "I got a promotion."

 I clapped loudly. "Way to go, mom! When can we move into the mansion, then?"

"Now that's simply hurtful." she said, making a face at me. "That's not the end of it, though."

"I'm listening."

 My mom puffed out her cheeks and breathed out. "You know, do you ever get the feeling that we've stayed in this city too long?"

 At those words I felt my heart start to pound. "Yes?" I said tentatively. 

 A huge grin spread across her face. "We're moving to Daejeon. We're getting out of Seoul."

 What?  I felt numbness spread from my chest to the tips of my fingers. Daejeon was a city at the middle of South Korea, a four hour car ride from Seoul. I had never been anywhere near it. 

"But Seoul is our home!" I blurted out, without pausing to think. 

 I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Daejeon was a big city, but it was still far smaller and less developed than our proud capital of Seoul. And apart from that, how had my mom expected me to take the news? Why was she smiling at me like this was the best thing that could possibly happen?

 Hyunjun seemed to be thinking something over. "Daejeon?" he echoed. "Where's that supposed to be?"

 My mom looked horrified. "You are twelve years old, young man." she said. "What on earth have you learn in school?" 

 He shrugged. "Survival tactics?"

 "Jesus, I have raised an idiot." sighed my mom. "Enlighten this ignorant soul, Hyuna." 

 I realized that I was trembling. A thousand thoughts were running around inside my head. Ever since we had lost our bastard of a dad, I had done my best not to upset my mom about anything. I had figured she needed a break. It had been an unspoken rule I had set for myself over the years, invisible but solid. My mom had been through enough, and I didn't want to be something else that stressed her out. 

 But this was something I had not anticipated at all. Move? To a city I'd never even seen? And leave everything I had ever known? What about my friends, my town? What about watching bad movies and trash talking with Yerin?

 I tried to keep a still face. As far as I remembered, I hadn't been angry at my mom for over six years. I kept my temper in check. Angry as I was, I wanted to keep that streak alive. After all, I could be quite an actor when it came to emotions. Six years of concealment had taught me that. 

"When are we leaving?" I asked, trying to sound casual. I put on a strained smile. 

"Two weeks from now. A week before  summer vacation ends." My mom seemed to take my reaction as a positive one. "You'll be starting second semester there. Won't that be exciting?"

 The corner of my mouth twitched dangerously, but I kept my mask on. "Sure." I said. "The best."

 A week later, I rushed out of our apartment steps and headed for the park, pulling on a thin jacket. It was around seven in the evening, and the sky was not quite dark yet, tinted with red. The moon peeked out like a shy child from behind a darkened cloud.