Jaylen sat at his desk, searching the internet for any kin he may have. He had questions that only his father's side could answer.
Was he South, or North Korean?
Definitely South. He was sure of it, but everything made him question anything.
Did he have any living relatives from his father's side?
Was his dad always so corrupt?
He wanted answers, and the only way he could truly find them is if he went back to Utah himself. Which he probably wouldn't be doing anytime soon. Maybe for winter break, or summer break. He didn't really know when. His mom had moved to New York for business, and wouldn't go back to Utah unless she absolutely needed to.
His phone rang, and he had immediately known it was his mom calling. Jaylen only allowed saved numbers to come through, either that or he'd have to start giving girls fake numbers.
"Hello?"
"Jiang, how are you my sweet boy?" Lily asked on the other line, Jaylen was getting used to that name, he didn't hear it quite often unless he spoke to his mom.
"I'm okay, you?" He asked. His mother must've still been at work, since he heard papers shift around. If Lily wanted to speak later, Jaylen would be okay with that. But, she was constantly busy. New York was full of life and problems.
"Just tired from work. What're you up to?"
"Going to a party with Derek." He said simply, leaning back in his chair. He knew his Mom wouldn't be too happy to hear that.
"Again? Jiang, you're in college to focus on learning and focus on finding a balance in life." Lily started. If she kept on, Jaylen knew he'd be lectured for hours. He was aware that his mother just simply cared about him, but her nagging wouldn't make anything better.
"Right, and focus on finding myself, because I'm lost in my own world." Jaylen sighed, chuckling dryly.
"That's not what I meant." She sighed out, realizing how harsh she might sound.
"No I get it, you want me to find myself but I can't even go back to Utah and-"
"Jaylen, we've talked about this. You won't find answers in a place I fought so hard to keep us out of. You have to let this go." Lily would never understand how her son felt. Feeling incomplete, like he didn't even know himself.
"I'm so sorry that me wanting to know where I came from is an inconvenience for you. Maybe if you never fucked Dad, I wouldn't be here." Jaylen scoffed out, feeling his heart quicken, and a headache formed.
"Jaylen... you lived in Utah your entire life and suddenly you're looking for answers? You can't even be surprised that I'm concerned."
Jaylen rolled his eyes. Concerned for what? It didn't make sense to him at all.
"Why are you being like this? As if you didn't know I wanted to know more about my fucked up family-"
"Curse one more time Jiang, I will revoke your allowance."
Silence. Yeah, Jaylen needed that money.
"You're being inconsiderate Mom, all because I wanna get to know more about Dad? You don't need to protect me, I can protect myself. I've been protecting myself my entire life, and suddenly you wanna play hero?"
That definitely caught Lily off guard, seeing how she was so quiet that Jaylen assumed the phone disconnected for a split second. He knew he sounded harsh, but his patience with his mom was thin. No one made Jaylen mad, the way his mother did.
