running into august wasn’t part of the plan. then again for the past few years nothing has gone according to the meticulous plan that his parents ( read: mother ) had sculpted for him. for one thing he’s not even human anymore, he’s far from being a doctor, and he’s lost all contact with his former life. it’s safe to say that his last two years have been quite rough. seeing august was a surprise and although it caused seungjae crippling anxiety and panic to see the younger male again it was also a breath of fresh air.
to say he missed his old life, ( yes, even his parents ) his old friends, was an understatement. sometimes he wishes he could just be brave enough to pick up that old disconnected phone of his, to scroll through the address book and hit call on any of those numbers. two years have gone by and although the phone still sits in his dresser drawer it remains untouched. seungjae knows that what he did to august was a cowardly move. he doesn’t even have a proper excuse like he would with his parents if they were ever reunited. however, in that desperate moment of companionship he decided to take that leap of faith.
it took some time and he’s not sure how he was even able to convince the other but here they are sitting together, having a hopefully civil meal and conversation together. seungjae can feel how heavy the air is and he had taken a bite of his food, but despite it being made for his kind and should satisfy his tastes he can feel the metal linger on his tongue. that alone was enough to make him lose his appetite despite how starved he knows he is, if his paler than usual skin is anything to go by. he’s just playing with his food now, busying his hands as he replies, “um i finished med school and i was going into my second year at my residency and i got bit i suppose. i don’t remember much of it.” he decides to hold back on those details for now. it’s an obvious lie, after all, it’s hard to forget what it feels like to have the life drained from you.
“two years later here i am. i think i’m doing ok. i work at seven eleven as you know and i get by with some of the money i get from my streams.” he’s finally stopped fidgeting now as he makes eye contact with august, “how have you been…since…you know…” he hates that he can’t be as confident as august.
August listened, quiet, taking in Seungjae’s words. So his life just continued on without August. Was what he really thought. Med school, then residency, all without August. Yeah, he was hurt, it was petty to think about, selfish, but still. Four years ago, their relationship had ended. Really, it never did. But after a month or so with no contact, he kind of just assumed. And Seungjae just continued on, like nothing happened, apparenly. Other than the fact that he was now a vampire. But even then, there was two years of normalcy without him.
He nibbled at his food, quiet, even when Seungjae finished an now it was his turn to speak. He took a deep breath, grabbing the glass of wine that sat in front of his plate, and leaned back in his seat for a moment. Not proper mannerism, but did it really matter? This was more stressful than getting into medical school. Leaving the U.S. Coming to Seoul, nine years ago for schooling. Living here now. A place he didn’t grow up in. This conversation was more stressful than all of them combined. He finally shrugged.
“I’ve been fine,” August answered smoothly. A lie, for the most part. Lately, he was doing better, fine. He had healed. The wounds seem to be opening now though. He took a sip of the wine, before setting it down, still sitting back. He crossed his arms. “I finished medical school, obviously. I’m in my residency now. First year,” he listed off, “My mother discovered she had breast cancer in those years. Though I’d have to go back to America in the middle of the school year,” he listed, biting his lip as he thought about anything else eventful. “Oh, and a year after you left, I met my birth father. Since, you know, I’m adopted. He’s apparently an old, asshole vampire who thought New Orleans was a wonderful playground for him and took advantage of a drunken woman. So, there’s that too. Nothing else eventful, really.”
