Crossing Over

Twenty Three

The end of the week had approached sooner than anyone was ready for, mostly Jin. He had been looking over the contents of the folder day and night but was still struggling to come to a decision. Even if he could postpone giving Mrs. Sinclair an answer about the house for another two weeks until after things had been settled, he would still need to find somewhere else big enough for the three of them to live. On top of that, he had already learned that the current real estate agency he was using in Seoul wasn't to be trusted. They had sold him a haunted house and neglected to even inform him that people had died there. 

Namjoon was halfway done with his college. Dae was only in her first semester. They had moved around alot, sure, but the past two years they had stayed close enough to Seoul for Namjoon to attend college. There had been a couple semesters where his classes were online because of it. He didn't want to do the same thing to Dae, which meant it would take longer to find the perfect place. He wasn't even thirty yet but already felt that he was too old to continue moving constantly and renovating houses. 

His phone started buzzing on the counter. He stared at the name on the phone before hitting accept. "Hello?" 

"Mr. Kim! Hi, I was calling in regards to your contract questions. After looking it over, the only choice you have if you still want out of the lease for the house would be to sign it over to Mrs. Sinclair. She made a very generous offer for it and you'll be making quite the profit. Have you given any more thought to her request?" The realtor was her usual overly cheerful self. 

"No, Ms. Choi, I haven't come to a decision yet. I try no to tie my business to that of criminals so I'm sure you can see where my issue is." 

"Oh dear! Mrs. Sinclair has no record. We thoroughly check each and every person we do business with before we taken them into the homes of others for that reason, I assure you," she prattled on. 

"Then you must have missed the part where she abused the children she fostered in this home and was ultimately responsibly for their deaths. Or did that part not come up on your thorough check?" Jin was getting closer and closer to losing his temper. 

"Mr. Kim, I would advice you to take the deal. If Mrs. Sinclair were to take this matter to court and press that her husband sold the house without her consent even though his name was on none of the official documents, you could lose. You wouldn't make anything back which would mean you'd be out all the costs of moving, supplies for renovations, and everything else. Is that really what you want?" Her tone had a softer edge to it but the edge was still there. She was playing directly with his security and she knew it. "I know college is expensive Mr. Kim. You have not one but two siblings currently in college. Can you afford that kind of loss?" 

"I.. I need a little more time," Jin said quietly. The living room door opened and shut. "I'll be in touch." He ended the call before Joon and Dae came into the kitchen. 

"Everything okay?" Namjoon asked immediately. Jin looked as though he had just been caught stealing the last cookie that Dae had claimed. He laughed awkwardly and waved his hand to brush off the concern. 

"Everything's fine. How were your days? Did you study hard? Any surprise tests?" He turned his back to them to continue the meal preparations he had been working on before the call. 

"We did have a surprise quiz today over chapters we were supposed to read last night," Dae answered from the doorway. 

"Oh? How did you do?" Jin asked. 

"Well, I was surprised, that's for sure." She grinned and ducked out of the room to avoid Jin's angry stare. He hated when she joked about her grades. "I'll be in my bedroom making no noise and pretending that I don't exist!" She called from the stairs. She laughed to herself at another quick joke. 

"That girl.. I swear," Jin muttered. 

Namjoon laughed and shook his head. "She knows how to get to you," he replied. 

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My undying love and devotion if you get the quote Dae used!