shorter than usual cos i wanna experiment with shorter chapters :)
THEY HAD ARRIVED AT THE BAR after a long walk, having to travel back through the winding passages mark had walked through on his first dark night at wingate. in the flickering sunlight, they seemed more sinister- like at any minute the sun would disappear leaving them trapped in a maze of cobblestones and brick walls.
however, bambam and jackson's light hearted banter quickly released some of mark's unwanted tension and he watched with an almost-happy smile on his face as the pair strolled next to each other, jackson a little more uncomfortable than bambam. he found it amusing that they weren't actually dating, they looked quite cute together.
they had tried their best to include mark in the conversation but whenever they did he would barely reply with even one full sentence. he was unsure of what to say to them, they (more bambam than jackson) had warmed up to him so quickly but he was uncomfortable. in what world did people become friends in practically less than a week?
although he would come to find them good company as the night progressed, at first the conversation was stilted and mark felt awkward.
after what felt like hours of walking through the darkening alleyways, the trio burst into the open streets.
"wooo!" bambam cheered, "i haven't left wingate for so long! feels goooood!"
jackson smiled softly, agreeing, "it's nice to escape that place sometimes,"
that came as a surprise to mark, that they rarely made the journey through the alleys. he had hoped to come to the inner city of seoul whenever he could, visit gangnam, see all the typical tourist attractions. in this surprise, he turned to jackson, startled that it was jackson he looked for and not bambam, "you don't come out often?" he asked.
jackson shook his head, eyes cast down, "rarely. and normally it's only at night to do some shady shit. park doesn't like us going out,"
bambam nodded, "we try to sneak out whenever we can, me and jacks aim to have little celebration at a bar or something once a month. but most of the time, it doesn't really happen. too hard y'know."
jackson grabbed bambam's hand as he began to see the younger's eyes welling up. mark immediately regretted asking the question and looked to jackson with curious eyes.
"he's only been here 6 months." jackson said by way of explanation and somehow, mark understood what he meant.
he nodded and looked out at the empty street, immediately picking out the glaring neon sign for the estate agents he had visited. he laughed quietly to himself although he was unsure why, he found it weird to see the strange place again.
jackson smirked, unwrapping his arm from bambam's shoulder where he had been hugging the boy and walking over to where mark stood. bambam swifty followed.
"i remember that place." jackson said, his voice light and airy, something mark hadn't expected from him, "i was 13. fucking 13."
bambam squeezed his shoulder gently, "i remember too," he whispered, "half a year ago,"
"you were 13?" mark asked, shocked, "only 13?"
"yep." jackson replied, staring out to the tiny shop, "basically a kid. i walked in there with no money and the man working said he'd give me a place for free. wingate wasn't as nice back then so it was cheap, as in, there was no water, no kitchen- fucking nothing."
he paused to sigh, jaw tightening, "i walked in there and there were just people everywhere, fighting, arguing. it was a shithole of the worst criminals in korea,"
"still is," bambam laughed, "we're there."
jackson forced a tiny laugh out in response, "you're not a criminal bam. you've got a fucking good heart,"
"but yugye-"
"that wasn't your fault and you know it,"
"what happened next?" mark asked, breaking the moment. jackson motioned for them to continue walking along the street as he continued. there were no people there, it was eerie. but somehow, mark liked it, it looked like a place where secrets would be told and shared. it felt almost magical.
he stared up at the stars as jackson carried on, "i was in danger all the time. constant fear. people were suspicious, people were evil. then i met park. called him jinyoung then though."
bambam spoke quietly, "jinyoung was sweet and kind and funny when i met him. not like now.... never like now,"
jackson nodded, "he was like that back then too. when he first saw me he walked up and pulled me into a hug. i thought he was gonna hurt me," he laughed quietly, "but he didn't. he told me he had seen me around and then he brought me back to his place,"
bambam shook his head, "and you understood that? when jinyoung first spoke to me i had no idea what he was saying. i only spoke thai!"
"you're thai?" mark suddenly spoke up, interrupting jackson and bambam, "i knew you looked foreign!"
"and i'm from hong kong," jackson pointed to himself, "it's funny how much i miss the place."
"where are you from mark? your korean kinda sucks..." bambam asked and mark punched him jokingly on the shoulder causing bambam to groan a bit in false pain.
"i'm from america." mark said simply, shrugging.
by now, they had made it further into the city and more and more people were starting to join them on the no longer quiet streets. more shops littered the roads and cars popped up along past them, blaring headlights illuminating their faces in the dark.
"i've always wanted to go to america..." jackson said, "too bad i'm stuck in korea. probably never gonna leave, which is just great,"
it was bambam's turn to punch someone, slamming his first lightly into jackson's arm, "don't wallow, you wallower,"
"what if i want to wallow? i would very much like to."
"well tough luck cos we're here now," bambam said, pointing to a tiny shop a little further up the street.
"not yet." jackson argued, "i've still got some wallowing time,"
mark laughed slightly at jackson and jackson smiled back, "it's good to hear you laugh mark."
"be honoured," mark replied, "it doesn't happen often."
"well we're here to change that!" bambam said, "mr lee's bar will forever change your life!'
and with that, the trio were outside the building. bambam walked in first, pushing the door open and ushering the other two inside....