_HONEYCOMB LOVE. [jakehoon]

chapter one.

Jake has always been told that he had been born twice - first as a baby boy with the loudest of voices, cradled in the hands of his mother in one of the prettiest neighbourhoods in Seoul, South Korea. And the second time was in the midst of one of the most traumatic days of his mother's life, according to his grandmother at least.

He doesn't know much about that day, specifically the 8th of December, the day his 'inner wolf' presented.

It should be the day he remembers the most, the day when his mother and grandparents stopped calling him "sweetheart" or "honey", but "pup", the day he no longer went to kindergarten but to a forest to learn the basics of being a human...or werewolf.

But it never was something he remembers fondly, frankly, it's a day that brings him more pain than joy. December was always cold and made him tremor from the bitter weather that always seeped into the colder nights in his new home in Australia, they filled his home with an empty feeling, sort of like a missing presence that you know should be there, but isn't.

And whenever his inner wolf's birthday was coming up, his mother's smile never seemed to shine bright, never made his heart feel warm and full, it always lacked the gentle touch of love and comfort.

As a child, he never understood his mother's behaviour, he often brushed it off until he entered elementary school where he encountered werewolves that were not his family. Jake never seemed to fit in when it came to the happy stories his schoolmates used to tell him, and later on, he understood why.

The cold presence that lingers there every December was not seasonal sadness or some twist of guilt his mother had buried deep within her, but it was the day his father walked out.

Jake never asked his mother about it, he dreaded staring up a topic that was breaking her apart for so many years, and he wasn't ready to open up still-healing wounds. So naturally, he asked his grandparents, who were less help than he had hoped for.

All that they told him was that his father is a good-for-nothing scum that they should've gotten rid of years ago. They hadn't elaborated on who he is, where he is and why he left, all Jaeyun knew was that his father was not someone he should look for or even be willing to see.

It hurt at first, of course, it did. No one wants to be the child of a heartless asshole. For many years Jake had beaten himself up for being the thing that brings his mother so many bad memories and had always tried his best to not be a burden to her when all she did was care for him and love him.

Sometimes he wonders if things would've been different if he hadn't been born, much like anyone else who feels like a useless weight on their parents' shoulders. But his grandmother had always assured him that it had nothing to do with his birth, considering he supposedly took care of him until his 'inner-wolf' made its presence.

It was a rough time in middle school, especially because it was the time for change and puberty, both for him and his wolf. His anger and control were borderline impossible to get a hold of and it felt as if he was always too aggressive for the simplest of tasks. Jake felt the most frustrated at those times, he felt the saddest when his anger and wolf would take over at the most random of times, making him snap for no reason.

He has learned to control it, and has learned and adapted to his new body and mind, but it came with a harsh price - his relationship with his mother was rockier, making it so difficult for him to seek comfort in her. He had learned not to trouble her anymore, allowing her to live her life burden-free, bundling up all of his emotions within himself.

It wasn't hard at first and, over time he had grown used to it.

That's why when he finished middle school, he packed up his bags, said goodbye to his little pack of wolves and moved all the way back to South Korea, where he had signed up for "The Academy of Science and Technology" based in Seoul.