The late Autumn wind bit at his bare skin as he slowly slid the glass door shut behind him. He could see the wrinkled back of his grandfather's head.
Luhan had a blanket in his arms and silently joined his grandfather on the bench. Luhan wrapped the blanket around his shoulders and sat beside him.
"Thank you Luhan."
He nodded.
"I'm going to miss you. But you know this is for the best."
He nodded once more.
Luhan's grandfather was sending him off to an academy for the gifted in Seoul. Whether it was in studies or art or anything else, the academy claimed they could 'enhance' their talents. Grandfather thought it would look better on his resumes when he started looking for a job. It was almost like college Luhan supposes, but harder to get into and you had to graduate high school with a pretty high ranking.
"Luhan.....I love you so please don't take this personally... maybe it's best if you kept...you know...that a secret."
Luhan stiffened at his words.
He was born with some problem. He don't know how it happened and no one bothered to tell him. It doesn't matter though. It's not like it could go away if he knew what caused it.
His grandfather always said to hide it. That it would bring shame to their family name.
He was mute.
You could hear little sniffles when he cried, you could hear him gasp, or sigh but you will never hear his voice.
Luhan remembered trying to talk when he was little but he had seriously injured his throat and from then his grandfather forbid him to try.
The italicized words are sign language.
"Yes grandfather. I understand. My flight time is close. I need to leave."
He nodded and patted Luhan's shoulder before getting up, leaving the blanket to fall to the ground.
It was always like that. It's not as if they were family, it was rather they were two strangers living under one roof. They weren't close but he was the only family Luhan had left.
Luhan sat there a bit longer, trying to memorize the garden he used to run around in when he was little.
He sighed softly to myself before he got up, bending to pick up the fallen blanket.
Luhan walked back inside and draped the blanket over the couch and picked up his bag.
He swung it over his back and grabbed the bigger suitcase that he rolled along behind him as he left through the front door. Luhan blinked back tears as he climbed into the car grandfather had arranged for and took one last look at the only place he'd known his entire life.
The next few hours went by in a blur. Luhan sighed as he settled back in my seat. His legs were already cramping and he was on the plane for less than 5 minutes. He unraveled his earbuds to put them in his ears. Sighing, he closed his eyes, willing his body to get some rest.
The plane ride went by quick. The travel time between China and Korea wasn't that long, compared to other flights. Luhan got off the plane quickly, taking a deep breath, bracing myself for the things that might happen in the next 4 years.
"All right new students." A tall guy was standing on stage and was addressing the crowd of students standing at the base of the stage.
