Soobin came back into the room with a big metal toolbox that he was struggling to carry. Yeonjun hurried over to him to help him carry it, "Holy crap... I just needed a hammer."
"S-Sorry." Soobin said as Yeonjun helped him place the toolbox on the floor.
Soobin opened it and took out a hammer, handing it to Yeonjun, "Ok, I just need you to hold the door while I take out the pins."
"O-Ok." Soobin said as he walked back over to the door with Yeonjun.
After taking off the door and placing it on the floor, Yeonjun and Soobin started painting over the yellow spray paint. Soobin looked over at Yeonjun and said, "You know, you never told me where you learned how to fight."
Yeonjun laughed a little as he continued to paint, "What do you mean?"
"The first day of school when you fought Jungmin."
"I wouldn't really consider that a fight."
"I've never seen someone get away from him without a scratch... C'mon, you dodged his punches like it was nothing. And you won by just squeezing his wrist."
"Oh... I ummm... I don't really tell people about it."
"Why?"
"Because it just scares people away from me."
"I'm surprised I haven't scared you away yet... Tell me... I'm not gonna leave my own apartment."
Yeonjun softly smiled and kept casually painting as he replied, "I have a seventh degree black belt in taekwondo."
Soobin's eyes widened as he looked up, seeing Yeonjun being completely casual about it, "Holy shit... That's awesome! Can you do like fancy kicks in the air and stuff?!"
Yeonjun looked up, seeing Soobin smiling at him, which he happily returned, "Yeah."
"How long have you been doing it?"
"My parents put my brothers and I through classes when we were little. They wanted to do other things, but I loved it, so I stuck with it. I've been doing it for about fourteen years now... It was kinda the only thing I was excited about when we moved here."
"What do you mean?"
"The chance to study taekwondo in the country where it was born? Once in a lifetime."
"Where do you go to train?"
"This small place near where the hardware store is. I've been going there ever since we moved here... I go there a lot... It helps me clear my head... And the sabom is really nice to me. He's really wise."
"You have to show me something."
"I don't know... It's not really meant for show."
"Then teach me. I don't know if you can tell, but I'm kind of a wimp."
"No you're not, Soobin."
"C'monnnn, pleeaasseee... Teach me one thing."
Yeonjun hesitated for a second before putting down his paint brush and saying, "Alright..." Yeonjun stood up and said, "Stand in front of me."
Soobin quickly put his brush down and stood in front of Yeonjun, "Ok, first lesson: the discipline of taekwondo is about peace, not violence. The name itself is about bringing peace, literally 'putting others fists down'. It's about unity with your body, your mind, and your environment."
"Ohhhhh... That's why you were so calm."
"Well, I'm always calm... And Jungmin can't throw a punch, but that's a different issue..." Soobin and Yeonjun laughed at the comment before Yeonjun continued, "Always use a defensive poomsae unless you are in competition or your life is in danger."
"Poomsae?"
"That's what the poses are called... Once you have this unity, you will be nearly unstoppable."
"Yeonjun, you kinda sound like the old man from Karate Kid."
"First of all, this is not karate. Second of all, I'm telling you the truth... Like ummm... Here, try to punch me." Yeonjun said as he got into his stance and closed his eyes.
"Ummm... Your eyes are closed. I don't think this is gonna work out the way you want."
"This is the best way to show you the unity between body, mind, and life... Punch me."
"Are you crazy? Yeonjun, I'm not gonna hit you."
"Well, obviously you're not... I'm gonna block it."
Soobin rolled his eyes and weakly swung at Yeonjun's stomach, making sure it wouldn't hurt if Yeonjun missed. Yeonjun quickly put his arm down and blocked it with his eyes closed.
Soobin was shocked and he said, "Holy shit!! How did you do that?!... Wait, did you peek?"
Yeonjun opened his eyes and replied, "No, of course I didn't... The unity I have within myself blocked your punch... If you don't believe me, I'll do it again with a blind fold on."
Soobin smirked and grabbed one of the dish towels sitting on the kitchen counter. Soobin wrapped it around Yeonjun's head, covering his eyes in the process. Soobin tied it and held up two fingers in front of Yeonjun's face, "How many fingers am I holding up?"
"I don't know... four?"
"Perfect, I know it's working."
Yeonjun got into his stance again and said, "Ok, try and punch me again."
Soobin smirked and tried to trick Yeonjun by weakly kicking him in the leg. Yeonjun blocked it with his arm and said, "I said punch, not kick."
Soobin's jaw was to the floor, in complete shock, "What the—... How did you—... What?!"
Yeonjun smiled as he took off the towel around his head, "I told you, once you obtain the unity, your almost unstoppable... And that is your first lesson."
Yeonjun placed the towel back onto the kitchen counter and sat back down on the floor before picking the paint brush up again, like nothing happened. Soobin was shocked and quickly grabbed the towel, putting it over his eyes to see if Yeonjun could actually look through it. Soobin was even more amazed when he couldn't see through the towel.
Soobin placed the towel back down and looked at Yeonjun, casually painting again like nothing happened, "How are you being so calm right now?! That was incredible!"
Yeonjun smiled as Soobin sat back down next to him and grabbed his paint brush, "I do that for Kai and TaeTae a lot... They think I'm cool because I'm so spiritual, but I don't tell anyone. It's not supposed to be something you flaunt. It's supposed to be a connection between you and nature."
"I promise, I won't say a word."
"Thank you... It's just really personal. It's why I don't really tell people that I do taekwondo."
"I totally understand. I promise, I won't tell anyone." Soobin said as he held out his pinky finger towards Yeonjun.
Yeonjun happily brought his hand up and linked his pinky with Soobin's, "Thank you. I really appreciate it."
"Of course." Soobin replied before him and Yeonjun pulled their hands away from each other.
. . . . .
Once Yeonjun and Soobin finished painting and put the door back in its place, Yeonjun's phone started ringing. He took it out of his pocket and saw that it was his mom, "Oh... Hey, is it alright if I take this?"
"Yeah, of course. Go ahead." Soobin replied, making Yeonjun smile and answer the phone.
"Hey, mom." Yeonjun said to her in Korean, instantly making Soobin's happy mood go away from those words, "Yeah, I can be home by six o'clock... My friend Soobin remember?... Someone vandalized his door so I was helping him paint it... It's not like that mom!... I'll ask him, one sec..." Yeonjun took the phone away from his ear and covered the microphone before asking, "Hey, Soobin? My mom's inviting you over for dinner, wanna come?"
"I don't wanna waste more of your time."
"You're not wasting my time."
"I don't wanna bother your mom... She already has to cook for three teenage boys."
Yeonjun noticed how sad Soobin looked and softly asked, "You ok?"
"I-I'm fine... I don't wanna bother her."
"You sure? Do you have food for tonight?"
"Yeonjun, I'll be fine."
Yeonjun sighed before bringing the phone back up to his ear, "He says he has something to do... I know, mom... Ummm seven o'clock tomorrow... Yeah... Ok, I'll see you in a little bit... Love you, mom... Bye." Yeonjun took the phone away from his ear and looked at Soobin, seeing how his mood has clearly changed since before he took the call, "Hey, you sure you're ok?"
Soobin looked down at his feet as he said, "C-Can I ummm... I-It's stupid, never mind."
"Hey..." Yeonjun said as he moved closer to Soobin, "It's not stupid... What is it?"
"C-Can I tell y-you something?"
"Of course, you can tell me anything."
Soobin stared at his feet and stuttered out, "M-My p-parents... Th-They..." Soobin bit his bottom lip to stop it from quivering, making Yeonjun gently place his hands on Soobin's shoulders.
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, ok?... No pressure."
Soobin picked his head up as a tear streamed down his cheek, seeing the concern in Yeonjun's eyes, "Th-They w-were in a c-car c-crash a-and..." Soobin bit his bottom lip again and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to stop himself from crying.
Yeonjun quickly wrapped his arms around Soobin and let him cry on his shoulder, "You don't have to say anything else, ok?... I'm so sorry, Soobin."
Soobin started sobbing and managed to stutter out, "I-I m-miss *sniff* th-them."
"I know... Oh my goodness, I have no idea what I'd do without my parents... Soobin, I'm so sorry."
Soobin's sobs turned into sniffles after a minute and he picked his head off of Yeonjun's shoulder. Soobin wiped his tears away with his sweater paws while Yeonjun kept his hands on Soobin's shoulders, "S-Sorry... I-It was over t-two years ago, b-but I s-still get s-so emotional."
Yeonjun frowned at Soobin's puffy red eyes and the sad expression on his face, missing his smile so much, "Never apologize for that... You're allowed to cry and be upset... It's ok."
"I-I just wanted t-to tell you why I-I live alone in this t-tiny apartment... That's w-why everyone looks at m-me in the halls. I-I'm just the sad loser who lost h-his parents."
"Hey... You're not a loser, Soobin... And I'll always be here for you, ok? If you ever need a shoulder to cry on, or if you need some food, or if you just need some company, either call me or come to my house."
"I-I don't wanna waste y-your time."
"You're never wasting my time, Soobin... I like hanging out with you... Here, lemme write down my address..." Yeonjun reached in his pocket and pulled out the receipt from the hardware store. He grabbed a pen he saw on the kitchen counter and wrote down his address. He handed the paper to Soobin and said, "If you ever wanna come, you're always welcome... I wrote down the number for our house phone in case you can't reach my cell phone."
Soobin took the receipt and smiled a little as he read it, "Thank you... Th-Thank you for buying everything and helping me and—"
"You don't have to thank me... I got you, ok?"
Soobin brought Yeonjun in for another hug without saying a word, staying like that until Yeonjun had to go back to his house.