𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐗 || [𝑴𝒊𝒏𝑺𝒖𝒏𝒈]

Chapter 5 - Looking for Jisung

"It was winter of last year", Yuqi said.
"When you left this town for your flashy college. But your friends? They stayed. Those dunces from your class - I've got to give them a piece of my mind someday- they never got over annoying Jisung. "

" I tried my best to keep Jisung's sexuality a secret. He told me his dad would kill him if he knew, so I started "dating" him. One secret for another. I was gay too and beginning to fall for my Miyeon, but you were in the way. I kinda always hated you for it. You didn't love Miyeon right. But none of that undid the damage you had done. "

" For many days Jisung wouldn't touch his instruments, the things he loved so much. What he couldn't live without, his music, now seemed to have the corpse of his old self rotting in them, each cravice, each string- it looked up at him with eyes hollowed with death. I was struck with so much fear for the boy. Ever since I'd known him he'd been cheerful, and although shy in public, with his close friends he was the biggest joker. Never being stingy with a smile or a kind word. "

" It all just came to a standstill. Jisung as we'd known him was lost. Everywhere he was, there was nothing of him. Jisung wouldn't look me in the eye, even though I was the only who knew surely of his sexuality. He'd repeat the word "f*g" and cry sometimes. I'd never seen him break down like that"

" On top of this, your friends grew to be delinquents in the area. They'd hang arounr near the end of school and grab hold of Jisung and disappear with him for an hour or so. I tried following them once and ended up having to fight it out with one of them, and by that time the others were gone with Jisung."

" They even pulled me by the hair sometimes, saying things like "What's a bitch like you doing with that f*g? We'll show you what real men are" and I'd punch them in the face."

" Jisung would come home bruised on his body and only Miyeon and I would tend to them, and Miyeon only came back to visit during college holidays. She still does. She filled up the void you left in this town pretty well. "

" Things had died down near the start of final term, everything was going better than before. Jisung had started playing again. Miyeon is the one to thank for this, her pepper spray kept the guys away and she'd treat Jisung like a child. The boy's parents didn't care much for they know not of his sufferings. Miyeon probably was the only senior he could look up to. "

" Miyeon had encouraged him to join a music show downhill, much to his dad's annoyance. That man expected Jisung to be a nerd all his life. Fuckhead. Jisung had worked day and night to combat his depression and keep up with his studies and his music. It is our love for art, after all, that makes life liveable. He played very well that boy. "

" And then came the day. The day of his music fest. His father had agreed on terms that he'd keep music aside and study for a while after the show. He'd even agreed to attend the show. I was on my way to attend the show too, and I saw it all. One of your friends had found Jisung and his dad, and said this-

"Hey uncle, what's that pretty little boy doing with you huh? Hand him over to us instead, we'll show him all he needs to study"

Jisung kept quiet and hung his head low.

"Jisung! Is this your friend? What horrible way of speaking, young man! Atrocious!", said his father.

"Hold it hag",the boy said, "your sonnie has more horrible stuff than you'd like to hear. Jisung keep your dad shut!"

Jisung didn't say a word. His head in the same posture as before. His knees started shaking and he clutched onto his guitar strap.

"Jisung! What is this! You will let YOUR FRIEND SPEAK TO YOUR FATHER IN THIS TONE? ", screamed his father.

" Friend, huh? I like that. ", said the boy," Jisung. I didn't know I'd be friends with a f*g who's hole I wrecked last week. "

I'd been quietly hearing, and I was shocked beyond words. I was paralyzed. I could only look as his dad forced the guitar off of Jisung and struck the road with it, breaking and destroying the instrument. Jisung didn't say a word or look up as his father slapped him across his face and kicked him into the drain. The other boy stood there and laughed till the old man threatened to call the police. He dragged his son from the drain all the way to his house and locked him in.

Not a word had escaped Jisung.

I tried to reach him, via call via text you name it. His parents wouldn't let me enter his house or talk to him. They said I was a man myself! Fucking fools! His mother gave in and let me in but his father would always stay right behind his wife. Miyeon was in college and I didn't dare to tell her about this.

I was shocked that nobody cared to reach out to Jisung when he stopped attending classes, stopped showing up outside and stopped existing in everyone's life. Why was it so easy for people to forget someone? Jisung had been kind and helpul to everyone but no-one dared to mention him.

Everyone acted like he was dead.

If I'd known that that was the last time I'd be seeing Jisung, I would've kicked his father's ass. It was late spring last year, when all of nature bloomed into life, that Jisung died from all our lives.

People said he had committed suicide, or ran away, or had been kidnapped- I can't tell you which one's better, but their family had stopped keeping the window to Jisung's room closed. Anyone could see that there was no one inside. No instrument, no sign of life.

That's when I gave up looking for Jisung. "