Open My Eyes (Namjin)

|One|

"Blind loser"
"Ew look at him"
"Mom, that guy is blind!"
"Poor thing"

These were some of many things Jin heard as he walked down the street. His walking stick making little click noises on the groud attracting attention. Jin was used to hearing these, he learnt to ignore them and just move on.

"Hah, look a blind guy!"
"Let's mess with him!"
"Hahaha!"

The group of teenagers began to crowd Jin, taking photos with him and making faces at him. Jin felt low. He just tried to ignore them and walk along.

"Haha! Look at how the pictures turned out~"
"I bet he didn't even know we were taking photos with him!"

"I have ears y'know..." Jin thought to himself while walking at a distance far enough from the teenagers.

Jin was born visually impaired. Since a young age he was taught braille. His father left him because he thought that having a blind son would be useless and a waste of time to take care of. So now it's just Jin and his loving mother. Jin was bullied since he was little, people would whisper and gossip about him. Some would even try to take off his sunglasses forcefully and pry Jin's hands when he covered his face just to see his eyes. Sure enough, Jin got the idea that he was different from the others. He hated it, he hated being blind.

(Flashback)

"Mom, why am I blind? Why am I different from others?" 7 year old Jin asked while hugging his mother.

"Oh no, Jin sweetheart you are not different from others." His mother replied.

"Yes! Yes I am! People call me weird, my friends don't want to play with me because I can't see, I overhear teachers saying that I'm such a bother to deal with; why am I so different mom? I hate it..." Jin ranted to his mom, voice cracking and tears appearing.

Jin's mother was heartbroken, she hugged Jin even tighter and whispered soothing words into his ear while rubbing his back. It always got Jin to calm down.

(Flashback end)

Jin arrived at his doorstep, touching the number plate just to make sure he was at the right home. He took out his keys that were attached to his walking stick and opened the door.

"Mom? I'm home!"
"Jin!"

His mother ran to hug him.

"How was school, dear?"
"It was great, mom!"

Truthfully Jin had been beaten up by a few of his classmates. Jin was just good at hiding his feelings and bruises.

"Alright, go and wash up, I'm cooking steak for dinner!"
"Ah, that sounds nice, your steak is the best, mom." Jin said with a smile. Somehow whenever Jin was feeling down, food always found a way to lift his spirits up. Jin made his way up to his room, he lived in that house for so long he memorized where everything was located. Jin rolled up his long sleeves and started to apply pressure with his fingers on his arm. He moved upwards and continued to place pressure until he felt pain when he touched a spot.

"This must be the bruise..." Jin thought.

He made a mental note of where the bruise was and went down to the kitchen. His mother saw him and guided him to the dining room chair. She placed a plate of steak in front of him and began to feed him. Jin could eat the steak himself, but his mother always insisted that she should feed him.

"So, tell me about school today, honey" Jin's mother said.
"Uh, it was just the same as yesterday Mom. It's always the same thing, everyday." Jin replied.

It was a hidden routine he kept from his mother. Every morning Jin would wake up, go to school, attend class, have some paper balls thrown to his head, listen to students whispering about him, get beaten up, and go home. Some days the bullies wouldn't beat him, Jin considered those days as the lucky days.

"Hm, well why don't you try to make some friends?" Jin's mother asked.

"I-it's not that easy, Mom... don't worry, I'm fine by myself." Jin said.

His mother looked at him with concern, then sighed in defeat.

"Alright, I won't push you. Just, try to talk to some people okay? They will certainly want to be your friend. Maybe crack a joke or two!" Jin's mother suggested.

"I'll try Mom" Jin replied.

Truthfully he has tried to make friends, but everyone didn't want to go near him. People would scoff at him when he tried to talk to them, or shove him out of their way. It hurt, it hurt a lot.

Jin finished his steak and smiled to his mother. His mother hugged him and said,
"Hey baby? I'm going to go to bed. You should have some sleep too. Good night, I love you" She placed a forehead kiss on his head and went upstairs. Jin walked to the fridge and took out an ice pack, applying it to his bruise. He went upstairs to his room and lied down on his bed, dreading the next day of school.

"I hope they won't beat me up again..." Jin thought.

Jin slowly drifted to sleep with tear stains on his cheeks.

Hi guys! This is my first time writing a fanfiction so I'm sorry if it's not very good. I would appreciate some advice and I'll try my best to improve my writing. Thank you so much for reading, I hope you liked it! ❤