great unknown

location: her house

when: monday, feb 1st 11:30pm

status: closed | @adriangwon

                   — Although Sara’s giggle wasn’t loud enough to echo through the kitchen and the living area, she was still happy to be spending some time with Adrian. It hadn’t happened in a while, especially since they were apparently both busy with their personal lives, but when he texted, asking some tips on how to make something to eat for dinner, she invited him over, promising a quick course of cooking 101. They were in her kitchen, laughing and poking fun of one another when she heard her son’s crying. He was supposed to be sleeping through the night by now, but as of lately, he’d been feeling sort of restless. Sara instructed Adrian in the kitchen, and, after checking in on Woobin and settling him down, she returned to her friend.

“Anyway, as I was saying, it’d be good to hit the groceries with a shopping list in hands. It’ll make your life much easier, especially since we both know how distracted and forgetful you can be.” She teased, scrunching her nose at Adrian. “But yeah, vegetables are easy to cook and easy to stash in the fridge, so you should be fine.” The ding of the oven made Sara brush past her friend so she could take the veggie pie out of the oven and place it on the cook top. “And voila! Your first cooked meal. Congrats, Adri pie.”

— ◈ —

He glanced from the timer as Sara came back into the kitchen. He chuckled and rolled his eyes. “But then there’s the problem of 1) Remembering to make a grocery list, and 2) Remembering to bring said list with me to the store. Feels like there’s still a lot of set up for me to be distracted and forgetful.” Though he figured he could attempt to keep it on his phone. At least if that was the case, he’d have it on him -- whether or not he’d remember to update it so he wasn’t rebuying items he’d already bought would be another matter. 

The oven dinged and Sara walked past him to take out the dish. Adrian smiled. “Not sure I really feel like I did much--definitely wouldn’t have been able to make this without burning something without you though. So thank you for helping me with this. Hopefully it goes just as well whenever I decide to try to make this at home.” 

The questions made him want to turn and get out of the door again, fearing this reconnect with Adrian most of all, who he had kept in the dark, showered in darkness because he didn’t have the guts to tell him what was going on. But he had been scared because Adrian too seemed to be in on something, doing research, having knowledge of some case that might be related to his. He was afraid because he might’ve put Adrian in more danger. The apartment still looked the same, he figured that aside from a few new books, his room would be very unchanged as well. It didn’t feel like his place anymore, even though he knew he was still welcome there. 

He made the first step into the apartment with difficulty, looking worse for wear despite his visit to the hospital. His skin pale, hair long and dirty, parka worn down over the past months, and a backpack that showed a long journey home. But this had been home for a few months, and he still wished for it to be home. “Yeah, everything is okay,” he said. Not everything, but at least a few things. He rubbed the skin under his eyes, feeling heavy with sleep. “I’m- I’m coming back, if that is okay?”

— ◈ —

Now that the initial shock of seeing Zakary in the apartment had passed, he couldn’t help but look over his friend for a second. Concern filled his face, but he didn’t voice any of the things he was seeing in regards to the other. Adrian paused a beat before nodding after hearing everything was okay. That was good, right? And at least this was proof that the group wasn’t still after him. Or he hoped Zak wasn’t on their radar any longer. 

His eyes widened in surprised hearing what he said next. For some reason, he hadn’t thought there was an actual possibility of Zakary coming back, even if Adrian had been hoping it would be the case. “Yeah. Yeah, of course. It’s always your apartment too, so you don’t really need to ask.” 

“In an hour,” Teddy answers his friend back, eyes darting to the clock in the corner of his laptop screen before looking at Adrian over the top of his glasses with mild exasperation. The professor in him can’t help but worry slightly that Adrian doesn’t pay enough attention to his class schedule. The advice he’d been given from a former colleague had warned him against becoming so involved with his students whereabouts during their appointed lecture time. There was so many of them and only one of him after all. But this was different. Adrian wasn’t even a student of his but a friend. “Not everything I like has to do with school,” he starts before verring off in another direction. “But who else is in it?” 

— ◈ —

Adrian nodded absent mindlessly. Pausing, he glanced up to think about whether or not he actually brought school-related items aside from the random books he was reading. Well at least he had a pen, frowning slightly before going through his bag. He noted a notebook and a textbook. “Hm. I wonder if this is for today’s class...” he said to himself. Deciding to actually look up his schedule now that he was going through his bag, he sighed in relief when he did in fact bring the right items for today’s class. “So do I apparently,” he said, putting his phone back in his pocket. “You don’t mind me hanging out here til then, do you? Otherwise I can go find some bench or something if you need to be alone.” Or if a student came in looking for Teddy. “Uh... Just Scout. Somehow it just ended up that way.” 

Carly had been to more than a few of these parties over the years. While many libraries and even museums are federally funded their budget isn’t exactly overwhelming. Often decent improvements required a little schmoozing for donations. She’d learned the right topics that kept the conversation flowing, good ways to perk the interest of the wealthy donors who really only wanted the right off on their taxes. That wasn’t to say she actually liked the events, it was more an excuse to dress up and on occasion take home a ‘new friend’ for a night of frivolous fun. She was surprised how many people had a hot librarian kink. Her eyes shifted to Adrian as she spotted him in the crowd and she pulled herself from her thoughts as he approached. “I’m sure if we give it another 10 minutes or so we can sneak out and they’ll be none the wiser” She chuckles amused. “Either way he’ll probably still donate. That’s generally why they are here. They say we need to mingle to get donations but most of these people want to anyway. There’s a guy somewhere who wants to pay for a mural on the south wall. What do you want to bet his name will be on it somewhere or a visage of him reading to children as if actually does” 

— ◈ —

“I hope so.” While he wasn’t sure if they really could leave in ten minutes, he did hope that was the case. Events like this full of talking weren’t his favorite. He much preferred being able to find a place to sit and talk to the people he knew. The pressure of trying to make a sell (even if he wasn’t selling anything) made it weird. Or at least, he felt weird about it. Relief came a little easier over Adrian after hearing Carly’s opinion on the matter. “Well that’s good. I’d feel bad about blowing it for the library otherwise.” An image of said wall came to mind and he chuckled at the thought. “I’d say the chances are high. If they’re ‘paying’ for it and all, I wouldn’t expect less. Hopefully it’ll at least look nice though. Or maybe they’ll be classy and settle for a very nice plaque with their name on it.” 

“Neither can Liz,” Scout reports back with as casual of a tone as she possibly can. She can hardly let Adrian know that she had asked just about every person she knew and could stand to join this damn bookclub so that she wouldn’t have to sit here alone with them for at least an hour talking about books that they were exchanging. In reality she knew that she was partly to blame for this situation she was in. She had been so engulfed with the holidays and her dad being here that she didn’t think twice about it until it was too late. “I thought it was a little pretentious,” she started, flipping open the one that Adrian had just put down. “How do you even sit through that? Do you know how many times I scoffed out loud? Not many books can do that to me.” 

— ◈ —

“Oh... Well that’s unfortunate.” It was weird being in some book club with Scout by themselves. Weirder that they had ended up making one after having exchanged some books prior to the holidays. But at least they didn’t seem to argue as much when they were discussing books. Or he could claim to be reading when he was simply ignoring her. But unless Scout said she didn’t want to keep meeting up to talk about books, Adrian didn’t necessarily mind only talking to her about it. He shrugged. “I don’t know. There’s a lot of books like that, so I guess I just compare them to each other most of the time.” Considering some of the topics, there were plenty of authors writing because they think they were the know-all on the matter. “Or I just take them at face value since there’s bound to be someone who disagrees or proves otherwise what another person is saying.” 

who: @adriangwon​ when: after hours when the place is locked up tight where: acc community center

          “Don’t look at me like that. You’re the one that agreed to this as much as it was clearly your idea in the first place. Now come on ― ” Koda pushed against the newly unlocked door into the indoor swimming pool that he knew was going to be empty this time of night. It didn’t help that the only reason he knew was peeping in one of the AA meetings that someone had suggested he attend when he first landed back in Astoria. Or that he brought Adrian back there after splitting a six pack and another one hanging from his free hand. “Ladies first.” He grinned at the other, knocking them forwards as he followed through into the wide open space that hosted an olympic sized pool that had bleachers that lined against three of the four walls. The fourth opened up into the locker rooms where he had managed to snag a key off the janitors’ cart earlier that day. “See? I told you. Great idea, I couldn’t have come up with a better one myself. Why go to the beach when we can have this place all to ourselves?” That was until someone caught them, but that was a problem for later them.

— ◈ —

Adrian rolled his eyes and stepped through the opened door. “I said it would be nice to go, not that we should break into the place to do it.” Though even saying he wouldn’t mind going swimming hadn’t been that enthusiastic either. But being around Koda was like when he was with Raine, just kind of going along with what the other said and realizing too late that it was a bad idea. Walking with the other other man further in the community center, they ended up at the pool. He sighed, figuring it was better to stay now just so Koda didn’t get himself into more trouble. “I’d say it probably has something to do with us not being allowed in here. Do we at least have an exit strategy if we get caught?” Especially since there was a good chance they could. 

If she wasn’t working, Lorna was usually down at the park having a walk either with her dog or by herself, she chose the latter that day. She was taking a rest looking down at her phone to see where to have lunch when she looked up and seeing an all to familiar and friendly face. “Hey there Adrian” She smiled. “Nope my day off, which is good feels like I have been working non stop.” The brunette laughed motioning for him to take a seat next to her. “How are you, taking in the nice weather too?”

— ◈ —

Nodding, he took a seat beside her as she gestured for him to sit. “Nice. I don’t have work today either.” He kind of wished he did have work just so he had something to do though. But since the weather was nice, at least he wasn’t bored at home. The day off would be less enjoyable if that were the case. Now that he was sitting, Adrian pulled his bag from off his shoulder, rifling through it to find a book to read. He’d brought a few, not knowing what he’d be in the mood to read once he arrived at the park. “Yeah, I’m good. Just figured I’d read somewhere other than my room today. Aside from the non stop working, how are you?”

Location: Adrian & Zakary’s apartment @adriangwon​

After everything, after all those months, after the loss of his own sanity and the eventual disappearance of the Spirit - only through the self-sacrifice of someone whose kindness Zhyan didn’t think he deserved - going home seemed odd. 

He looked at the windows of the apartment he had shared with Adrian, and wondered if he was still welcome there. Adrian had seemed worried last time they met, but did that mean he wanted him to come back? He took several steps towards the building, and before he knew it, he was at the front door. Zhyan still had the key, it turned in the lock, and before he knew it, he was inside, looking up at Adrian. “Hey, can I come in?” 

— ◈ —

His attention towards the door when he heard the lock click. Perhaps his first reaction should have been concern, it wasn’t as if he remembered any of his friends saying they were coming over, but he found it more odd than anything else. What he wasn’t expecting to see was Zak -- they hadn’t had much of a conversation when he spotted him last month. 

“Hey...” he said, getting up from his spot on the couch. He turned and looked at the other. “Yeah, come on in.” It was still technically Zakary’s apartment too. “What are you... What are you doing here, Zak?” His brows rose in question and Adrian frowned slightly. “Is everything okay?” 

Where: North Valley, Astoria U

Status: Closed | @adriangwon​

The brunette plopped down on a chair in their usual corner of the university canteen with an exasperated sigh. The source of her discontent was the stupidly itchy roll neck jumper she had donned – the fact that her office was a thousand degrees combined with Liv’s tendency to fidget constantly had resulted in her being way too warm for her own liking. She could deal with the cold, from light drizzle to a blizzard, a blanket and a scorching hot cup of tea could fix her right up. But heat? Heat turned her into a whiney puddle of perspiration.

She said nothing to her friend yet as she scratched her neck and decided she had had enough – Olivia peeled off the item of clothing in one swift motion. “Before you say anything – no, this is not a weird kink.” She gestured at her chest, the exposed bit of skin marred by scratches. When she had taken off the jumper in front of her colleagues earlier, it had led to some rather juicy assumptions about her. “Why is it people are more inclined to believe I’m some sex freak than the owner of a moody cat?”

— ◈ —

Taking a bite from the sandwich he had bought, he flipped the page in his book when Olivia sat across from him. He half-smiled in hello and let his book fall shut. At her comment, his brows furrowed. “I definitely wouldn’t have jumped to that conclusion, but I appreciate the clear-up,” Adrian chuckled. There was a good chance he wouldn’t even have noticed if she hadn’t pointed it out as well. 

“Lack of drama in their lives?” he answered rhetorically before chuckling. “My friend has three cats, though I wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up with more somehow, so I get the cat thing. Sort of.” He wasn’t much of a pet person, but he doubted he’d be responsible enough to maintain one either. “You okay though?” Adrian asked, gesturing to the cat scratches. 

Adrian scribbled a note onto a Post-It and stuck it onto the page he had just finished reading. Since he didn’t have a class anytime soon, he had gone to find Teddy. Luckily his friend didn’t seem to working yet either. “When do you teach again?” he asked, distractedly glancing up at the other man as he continued to half read his book. “I think I have a class in an hour, but I forget--should probably look that up at some point.” It was partly why he was glad to have found Teddy since he needed someone to be responsible when he wasn’t being that. “Also, you should join book club. Not university related, but still interesting.” 

Grabbing his water, Adrian paused on the trail to drink. Usually he’d have gone hiking with someone else, but he never got around to actually asking anyone to come with him. Not that it really bothered him either way though. A sound came from further ahead of him and he glanced in that direction. Not remembering seeing anyone else on the path with him, he stepped towards the sound cautiously. It wasn’t the smartest idea in the world, but it wasn’t as if he could do anything else. Adrian relaxed when he did see another hiker just ahead of him, though he wasn’t sure what they were doing. “Hey,” he said after a pause. “Is everything okay?” 

Adrian fiddled with the collar of his shirt. Attempting to look presentable to schmooze for donations was never something he enjoyed doing. Both because of the attire and because he didn’t think it was a great idea to put him in charge of things like that. But at least he wasn’t the only person from the library trying to raise money for the place, so all he could do was hope that someone else would be better at whatever he was trying to do. Walking towards Carly on the other side of the room, he sighed loudly once he got to her. “How much longer are we supposed to be here?” he asked. “I don’t know if I impressed that guy over there or weirded him out.” 

Setting down their drinks, he sat opposite of Scout near one of the window tables. After taking a sip of his coffee, Adrian rifled through his bag on the floor for the books in it. He pulled two books out and put them on the table. There were actually a few in his bag, but he didn’t think it’d be the greatest idea to cover the table with books while they had full cups of coffee. “I don’t think Teddy is going to join,” he said, grabbing one of the books to flip through it. Finding the page he had been thinking about before sitting down, he reread it to find the line. “So what’d you think of that book?” he asked, not looking up from the one in his hands. 

Wandering around the neighborhood, Adrian found himself heading towards the park as usual. It was nice out for once, so he thought he might do some reading out there instead of heading home. He looked around for a place to sit when he spotted a familiar face. Instead of calling out to her, Adrian walked over towards her. “Hey, Lorna,” he said in greeting. “Not working at Coffee Spells today?” It was where he was used to seeing her around anyway, but he was happy to see someone he knew while he was out. 

With everything going on around the city, it gave Adrian plenty of things to check out outside of work. Having just checked out the snow sculpture exhibition, he wandered towards the contest that was taking place. Crowds of people were milling around to watch the sculptors and he fell into watching too. Some were definitely better than others, but it still looked like a lot of fun regardless. Aside from a few that were clearly competitive, everyone else seemed to be enjoying the process -- those people were more fun to watch anyway. A few more people came to join in on the watching, crowding Adrian and he shifted away to make more room, but it caused him to bump into the person he was standing next to. “Sorry,” he uttered out in apology. “I guess lots of people would rather watch the contest than join in. Myself included.” 

▬

But when? That was the question echoing in his brain. How much long could they wait until they were still able to find answers to their questions in a good timing? Or would they, eventually miss out their window towards the subject and it’d just be a failure he’d have to pile up inside his mind about not being as helpful to Astorians as he wanted to be. 

“I know, but there’s a chance that something might happen and lately I keep wondering if I’d be able to carry that weight over my shoulders, knowing that I’m potentially hurting those I care due to all of this,” it was clear that he was tired. And who wouldn’t be? After everything he had gone through, it was plausible that he felt powerless towards the situation. “Let’s take a moment to think about it, and maybe reach a solution that won’t lead us to any trouble.”

— ◈ —

"I know." While he didn't have family in Astoria, he still had people he cared about. Finding out Zakary had been a target left him feeling guilty. Though knowing that his roommate was a target for other reasons aside from Adrian's involvement hadn't exactly helped. But aside from that, nothing had really happened. Not in the way the group had threatened James at least. "There's not really a good choice in the matter, is there?" Either they kept looking into it and put people they cared about in danger or they dropped it and were left knowing what was going on in the background.

—

Since it wasn’t like Leon to force people to tell him things, noticing Adrian didn’t saying much about what was going on, the warlock didn’t press it. I mean… should he say anything? Adrian was in his house, after all. “Okay.” Leon shrugged, before he got up and went to the kitchen to start making dinner. It’s not like it would be too much hassle, but Leon needed to make his meal prep anyway. “It’s no problem. Like I said… I was going to make dinner anyway.” Leon was about to open the lower cabinet in order to grab some pans when he realized that he didn’t actually want to cook. Not right now, at least. “You know what? Grab your jacket. Let’s eat out. Is ramen okay to you?” He asked as he threw his coat over his hoodie, and adjusted the hood on his back. “I want something hot and spicy.”

— ◈ —

There was some relief in not being pressed further about it. Lying was never his strong suit, and even though he had never lied in the past to either Leon or Teddy, it was probably still an easy enough tell. But maybe it was why he had headed towards Leon’s place instead. Knowing he wouldn’t be expected to talk out everything going on with him had helped make that decision. Adrian got up from the couch and followed him to the kitchen. Watching him rifle through the kitchen reminded him of the failed attempts of cooking in his own place. The memory had him frowning for a second, and he was glad when Leon changed his mind and decided they should go out to eat. “Alright,” he nodded. Heading towards his bag, he pulled out a jacket he had packed and put it on. “Yeah, ramen sounds fine by me. I can treat since you’re letting me crash here.” It felt like the least he could do anyway.