Hello, everyone! :) Sorry it took so long-I just left Ireland after staying there for a month with my dad and his girlfriend, and I wanted to spend as much time as possible with them, since I won't see them until next year :(
munchymaxter: Thanks for the review~ ^_^
Hi-DefGirl0615: ikr? You just wanna make them die painful deaths O
GlitchAwesomeness: please don't cryyy ;A;
icyhot87: why are you cryinggg? *hugs* and thank you so much :)
glitchy'me: Hahaha we shall see what the wonderfully evil Miss Aubrey has in store for the bullies~
smrtangel: Thank you so much! :D
HiDefFreak: Of course not! D: As cliched as it is, I try to make sure my stories have some sort of happy ending :)
WARNING: Not much for this chapter, except for descriptive gore. I can't say much else without giving things away...
Grandpa and Glitch had rules when the elder man came to stay.
They were simple things: Glitch had to do his schoolwork before going to his friends, do his chores when he was asked to, respect Grandpa… They were simple things, and Glitch obediently followed them.
Except this time, he supposed.
One of the main rules was to be home before nine. Grandpa didn't like having to stay up late, waiting for Glitch to come home. On rare occasions, he would stay out later, but he would always check in beforehand.
Grandpa checked the clock on the wall for what had to be the twentieth time. It was nearing on eleven, and there was still no sight of his green-eyed grandson. His anger at having the dancer ignore the rule had morphed into fear and worry as more and more time passed.
He grabbed the house phone that was on the table next to him and dialed the number of Mo as fast as his stiff, old fingers would allow. Him and the rest of Glitch's friends had exchanged phone numbers before he had returned home in Miss Aubrey's personal taxi. He'd already called all of the girls, who had no clue where he was.
He waited impatiently for the person on the other end and sighed happily when it clicked.
"Mr. Seung?" Mo's slurred voice filtered through. It was obvious he had been asleep. "Is something wrong?"
Mo and the rest of the boys were sprawled out in Bodie's bedroom, trying to catch some sleep before the huge dance competition the next day. It was a tradition that they always had—hang out Friday night, and then dance most of Saturday.
"I'm sorry to be calling you so late at night," he said politely. "But is Jae-Kwong with you?" There was a confused silence on the other end—Mo's half-asleep brain was too confused to remember Glitch's real name.
"Glitch," Mr. Seung clarified.
"Oh," Mo said, and then immediately turned serious. "He's not home yet?" He sat up, fumbling to turn on the light, making all of the boys in the room groan loudly.
"No, I was hoping he was with you," Grandpa said fretfully. "Do you know if any of the boys have heard from him? I already called the women, they didn't know where he was. Is he staying at your house?"
Mo felt his heart slowly working its way down into his stomach. "No," he murmured. "H-he's not here." There was silence on the other end.
Mo hurriedly rolled out of bed and grabbed his hoodie, zipping it up. "I'll go out and try 'n find 'em," he said hurriedly, searching for his shoes. "He shouldn't be out 'lone this late, 'specially when it's freezing outside."
"I will do the same," Mr. Seung said. "Call me as soon as you find him, yes?"
"Of course," Mo said before hanging up and tying his shoes onto his feet.
"The hell are you doing?" Bodie mumbled in his pillow, while Angel looked at him blearily from his spot on the floor.
"Glitch's missing, I gotta go find 'im," Mo said.
The other two snapped awake, their tiredness forgotten. Both of the dancers started pulling on their shoes and warmer clothing before they left with Mo to go find Glitch.
In Glitch's apartment, Grandpa pushed himself out of the chair, grabbing his coat. He zipped it up and grabbed a hat for his balding head and a scarf—it could be brutally cold in the city at night, and the last thing he wanted to do was catch a cold.
"Mr. Seung," the man behind the security desk stood up. "How are you tonight?"
"Fine, fine," he muttered, too preoccupied with thoughts of Glitch.
"You're going out?" he has in surprise. "You really shouldn't, you know. This neighborhood is dangerous at night."
Mr. Seung turned his piercing dark gaze on security guard, making him flinch. "I do not need you to tell me what I should or should not do," he growled.
"Y-yes, you're right, I'm so sorry, sir. I didn't mean to offend you or try to order you around—"
Mr. Seung cut off the scared man's babbling by shoving open the door and storming out into the cold street.
Meanwhile, Glitch sighed as he paid for his latte at the coffee shop he was in. He'd managed to find one that was open all night, and had decided to camp out there for the night.
Flopping down at a near the window, he groaned and rested his head heavily in his hands.
He had no idea what he was going to do. He couldn't hide out here for the rest of his life—he'd eventually have to return to his house and face Grandpa. There was no doubt in the teenager's mind that he would have to explain everything about his encounters with his classmates, and even the mere thought of having to do that made him want to throw up.
Mulling over his thoughts, Glitch sipped at his drink, not caring how it scorched his tongue and throat as he swallowed it down. If anything, it was a good distraction from thoughts of his grandfather. He drank it faster, wincing at the pain it caused.
The last of the scalding hot liquid was swallowed, leaving his mouth aching to be cooled down. He dully ignored thoughts of getting a cold drink, rubbing his forehead.
An hour or so later, Glitch decided that it would be best to leave. The barista behind the counter was giving him odd looks, as she thought he was a runaway. Even though she wasn't doing anything yet, he wasn't going to wait around for her to turn him into the cops.
He forced a cheery smile as he threw away his empty cup. "Have a nice night," he muttered to her, exiting the coffee shop.
He stopped outside the door, trying to think of somewhere to go. Going to his friends would just make them ask questions, which was something Glitch wouldn't be able to handle in the mindset he was in. It was too cold to sleep or stay outside for a long time, but he couldn't remember many of the places that weren't clubs that would be open this late.
Glitch was thinking deeply when he heard his real name being called.
"Jae-Kwong!"
Glitch's head snapped up in horror to see his grandfather standing on the other side of the empty street, his hand slightly raised. When their eyes met, Glitch felt his stomach tighten. He started running down the sidewalk, desperate to get away.
Oh no he wasn't. Grandpa had been looking for Glitch for hours, even getting his friends to help. There was no way he was going to allow him to simply run off again.
With surprising speed for someone his age, Grandpa jogged across the street, yelling for Glitch to stop. The teenager didn't look at him, tears already brimming in his eyes at how he was being so rude to elder. He should stop like he was telling him to do, but he couldn't face the disappointment—
There was the sound of squealing tires, followed by a sickening thunk. It was followed by the sound of a body collapsing on the ground, and a car driving off.
Glitch whipped around, staring in horror. He sprinted in the opposite direction he had been going, rushing over to the crumpled body in the side of the road.
The sight of his grandfather lying in the road would be one that would haunt him for the rest of his life. One of his legs was awkwardly splayed, and the wrinkly skin covering his body was scratched up and bleeding, a few pieces of stray rocks from the road still lodged in some of the cuts. His hat had flown from his head, and his scarf was almost completely off of his neck. He coughed, and blood stained his mouth.
"Oh shit, oh god, no, grandpa," Glitch gasped, kneeling next to Grandpa's body.
People were starting to come out of the buildings, wondering what was happening. Someone yelled for an ambulance, but Glitch was too focused.
Grandpa looked up at Glitch with what seemed to be surprise, eyes wandering down to their interlocked hands. Dimly he heard Glitch's voice, and focused on it through the fuzz that was getting worse.
"Just—just hang on," Glitch yelled in Korean. "An ambulance is c-coming. You're gonna to be alright!"
"No…" Grandpa murmured, smiling sadly with bloody lips. "We both…know I'm…not."
"Please, please, hold on a bit longer until they come," he begged. "I can't—y-you can't leave me!" Tears were pouring down his face. "Please! You're the only family I have."
Grandpa's eyes were fading. "Your…" He broke into a coughing fit, which wrenched at Glitch's heart. "Friends…are your family. Look…after Grandma, will you? She'll need…lots of…" He never got to finish his statement.
Glitch stared down in horror, desperately feeling the bloodied neck for a pulse. He waited a few moments, before hunching over Grandpa.
"Oh god, no, no, no, please, no, don't leave me…"
The sirens in the distance grew steadily louder, but Glitch stayed where he was, rocking back and forth and still holding Grandpa's rapidly cooling, lifeless hand.
I feel so mean right now...;-;
But I swear! Glitch will end up happy, even if things are looking grim right now!
On a completely separate note, I finally got a tumblr today~ After being pressured by my friends for months, I caved XD If you wanna see some of my drawings, then I have the link on my profile.
I love you all so much! The next chapter will be much longer!