J-JIANG

@jianzino· said: “i know you think you have to get through this by yourself, but you have people here to help you.”

the sheer fact that jiho is standing there, right before him is a solid reminder as to why he can’t continue to drink around his ever expanding group of two whole friends. jihye’s done it, called the third person that made their group a trio and dragged him across an entire ocean to have a come-to-jesus meeting with him. and oh, what a line he chooses to start with. how entirely out of character for him. a line instead of simply telling him to break up his pity party and get his shit back together.

there’s a scoff there, a roll of the eyes that’s enhanced purely by the former contents of the now half empty wine bottle sat on the coffee table before him. “you’ve been watching far too many of those stupid american dramas.” his tone is sardonic at best as he reaches, once again, for his wine glass. no, this isn’t jiho’s problem, this isn’t jihye’s problem, it isn’t really anyone’s problem save for his own. it’s his own head, after all. he should know how to handle it, no?

jae presses himself up onto wobbling legs, stabilized after a seconds worth of practiced self control. he purposefully aims to not meet jiang’s eyes as he strolls past him and into his kitchen. “we both know why you’re here when you shouldn’t be-” he simply speaks to the air around him, reaching for a cabinet door, “-at least let me get you a glass.”

     “What else is there to say, Jaehyuk?” Jiang question hangs in the air. He doesn’t need to add on to that because everything that he isn’t saying, he says clear enough with his tone: It’s exactly what Jae doesn’t want to hear. Words such as you need to get yourself together and you have got to move on. That he needs to get a fucking grip, that his parents expect better of him, that he is better than this? Jiang’s not exactly the pristine model of a person who has his shit together-- he’ll never be the one that can cast the first stone in situations like this.

“I’m sorry, Jiho—”

Jae waits and he does it well. Patience is a virtue, after all. At least that’s what his mother had always told him growing up. He knows the news comes with assumed shock. Nobody had expected it, for the head of the Jiang family to fall victim to a car wreck of all things. He doesn’t mention the speculation around the accident- the lack of skid marks, the fact that the driver of the other car had yet to be located, the fact that the other car had been registered to a man dead for a decade now, the fact that the case had been closed by local law enforcement without so much as an investigation.

His fingers begin idly twirling his straw in his soft drink, too sweet for his tastes, but he’s not about to fall victim to disgusting fast food coffee. Truth be told, he’s never wholly understood Jiho’s affinity for the large cities in America, for New York City in particular. Though less densely populated than Seoul, it just feels.. dirtier and seedier than home. One of the larger reasons why he’d taken it upon himself to drop everything and race to be the first person to break the news to his friend and former ward. That and the fact that he simply didn’t trust other guards close to the newest boss while the group was in the process of falling into a power vacuum.

“— I know that you’ve a lot to do here, that you’ve established yourself here and I respect that and know that I’m so proud of that fact that you’ve done this yourself. However, you know as well as I do, that we need you at home for the moment.”

     A car wreck.

Jiang knows that’s bullshit when the words leave Jae’s mouth but he remains seated. A slow glance is thrown around the restaurant— the grime in between the tiles to the scratch marks on the table and the bustle of street life going on outside, all he can think this is the moment when his life changes forever. Inside of some restaurant that should’ve been torn down and rebuilt years ago. One minute, he’s landing modeling sessions for small brands, interning downtown Manhattan and making it on his own. Then next thing he knows, he’s the sole beneficiary of a multi-million company and now the head of an underground crime syndicate that specializes in the trade of stolen art and artifacts and weapons dealing. 

He takes a deep breath in, foolishly he thought he could walk away from all this. That an ocean between him and his family would be enough to stop the inevitable. And even though Jae says he needs to come home for the moment. They both know the minute his feet touch Seoul soil everything he cultivated here. Friends, his job, his shitty little apartment that he managed to scrap together enough to make rent will just become remembrance of a dream that almost came true. He releases the breath and pushes his chair back in order to stand. There’s a lot to be done. Funeral preparations. Announcements to be made. He fully expects Jae to fill him in on what’s been happening within the company during his absence on the plane ride over and the circumstances surrounding his father’s sudden death. And what deals was he in the midst of. 

NAME: Jang Jiho ALIAS:  Jiang AGE:  26/27 (present verse)  FAMILY:  Mother, Father, both grandparents on his mother’s side but they’re estranged SIGNIFICANT OTHER: Main (Swan.), Second (Jaehyuk.) 

𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋.

RELIGIOUS BELIEF: Christian. Though he doesn’t actively attend a church he does believe in God or a higher being. It’s part of the reason he likes crosses. SINS:  greed  /  gluttony  /  sloth  / lust  / pride  /  envy  /  wrath VIRTUES: chastity  /  charity  /  diligence  /  humility /  kindness /  patience /  justice PRIMARY GOALS IN LIFE: To live life to the fullest on his terms. That’s really the best way to put it. He seeks thrills, does whatever makes him feel good even if it’s self destructive and says fuck you to the rest. KNOWN LANGUAGES: Korean, Cantonese, English, and bit of latin from the classes he took at Aglionby  SECRETS: He doesn’t really have secrets aside from his eating disorder or drug addiction which is more prevalent in earlier verses. He’s very much a what you see is what you get type of person. SAVVIES: Art. He’s also actually pretty good at cooking.

𝐏𝐇𝐘𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋.

BUILD:   scrawny  / bony  /  slender /  fit  /  athletic  /  curvy  /  herculean  /  pudgy  /  average HEIGHT:   175 cm / 5′8  SCARS / MARKS: He’s got a few scars on his arms from fights when he was younger but even those are barely noticeable.  ABILITIES / POWERS: He’s a good fighter. What he lacks in bulk and height he makes it up by being quick on his feet and he’s good at reading his opponent and quick with a switch knife. But his abilities aren’t otherworldly, he’s just learned from experience.  RESTRICTIONS:  n/a

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐒.

FOOD:  He likes Korean street food. Mainly because as a kid he wasn’t really allowed to eat it given his mother was always concerned about his ‘chubby cheeks’ but would sneak out with Jihye to eat things like tteokbokki or dakkochi. Other than that, he really likes stews or soup. DRINK: Tea with a bit of honey. He doesn’t really drink anything other than water and occasionally juice. PIZZA TOPPING: None. He got burnt out on pizza while living in Henrietta. He won’t eat it COLOUR: black, white and red. MUSIC GENRE: Rap, R&B. He’s really picky when it comes to music and hates a lot of genres. Hates most pop music, tolerates indie music, despises anything that sounds like it’s from a musical and most 80s music. BOOK GENRE: Horror, thriller, biography. MOVIE GENRE: laughs at horror movies, strangely doesn’t mind drama or ‘chick flicks’, he’s got a weird taste in both movies and television series.  SEASON: none. CURSE WORD:  Fuck off. SCENT(S): It depends. A lot of smells make him feel sick so he’s not really big on scents. Likes whatever Jae tends to wear though. 

𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌.

BOTTOM OR TOP:  Switch. Power bottom most days but hey he’s not opposed to topping. SINGS IN THE SHOWER: Never. LIKES BAD PUNS: On a good day. Any other day he’ll just pretend you didn’t say anything.

leviara flicks over her paperwork set as homework for that day . she loathes paperwork and charts as much as the next thing & wishes for a break . was an alien made for this ? probably not . his reaction towards the innumerable data scattered on her desk doesn’t help matters , with her semblance beginning to resemble something akin to boredom —— she’s about to reach her limit , ready to grab a beer and settle down to watch some netflix because of him . ❛   and you try working as a neurosurgeon on a day to day basis . i see and read over this shit every day . it hurts my brain .   ❜   hand drops a stapled stack of paper in front of her , before she gets up to grab a can of something decent from the refrigerator . she doesn’t get drunk easily , she just likes the taste of certain beers . ❛   to help with the death of your brain cells , you can have a drink . i’m not making you pay for it this time . i can be nice .   ❜   correction : nice , but sometimes . wrapping a hand around the aluminium treasure , she whips her head back around to glance to the male .

❛   do you want one ? yes or no ?   ❜ 

     While she works he plants himself in front of the tv for a couple of hours because he’s got nowhere else to be tonight.

Jiang stills when the familiar sound of the refrigerator door creaking open resonates from the kitchen. He took a few cans when she wasn’t looking earlier that evening and sipped at them slowly. So he’s waiting to be yelled at for that but instead she’s mumbling things he can’t hear so Jiang doesn’t respond immediately. Once he’s able to figure out she’s not annoyed at him, he’s barely listening as his eyes remain trained on the television screen in front of him. He blinks slowly, tries to make sense of what he’s watching but his eyes keep glazing over while the last few of his precious brain cells die off. The blinking lights and color changes on the screen do little to help the haze that stems from getting only six hours of sleep in the past forty-eight hours. Finally he answers with a nod that she doesn’t see so he shouts back. “Yeah. I’ll take a can.” 

 Yingyue rolls her eyes at that statement. She leans onto the back of her seat, arms crossed and annoyed. For a while, she glares at him silently. At that moment, she wanted to react immediately with a long-winded speech and direct all her anger at Jiang, but unfortunately, they’re at a public space. The restaurant’s balcony have guests around them, and Yingyue knew photographers are stationed by their hidden locations. It’s not the time or place to a make scene. The last thing she wanted was a negative column on hearsay gossip on her and the young guy. Yingyue then leans forwards and takes a big sip from her champagne glass, hoping the drink will cool her head off.

“Didn’t I tell you you irritate me sometimes?” She snaps back, chin on her hand, while making contact with him.

     There’s a hint of a smirk as Jiang studies Yingyue. Then he leans forward, rests his crossed arms on the table only to remain quiet long enough that it comes across like he’s going to let his girlfriend have the last word.