scrapbook.

NIGHT SKY.

heejun sighed deeply as he
put away his guitar back into
it's case. he'd made less than yesterday, and he knew full well
that today's money wouldn't keep
him fed anywhere near a week.

"the fuck do i do now then..."
he mumbled to himself, standing
up and pulling up his hood as small
raindrops began to fall from the darkening sky.

he walked away from a now yesterday's spot, his footsteps heavy, his shoulders hanging lower than usual as he knew he'd have to miss yet another day of eating.

thud.

"aish, fucks sake can this day get
any worse...?!"
heejun cursed, brushing himself
down as he stood up from the soaked floor.

"how much d'ya think that'll go for?"
a deep voice from behind him spoke, laughing slightly.

"just grab it and run..."
another whispered in reply.

"these fuckers..."
heejun tsked, as he spun round and pulled his gun from his pocket, pointing at one of the male's heads.

"sHIT OKAY OKAY WE'LL LEAVE."
the taller man spoke, a cigarette between his teeth, his hands raised in fear of the gun.

the other simply laughed,
"i bet that's not even a real gun."

heejun smiled and loaded the gun,
"keep up the way you are and you'll find out."

they both gulped and backed away slowly, "okay, you win, we'll leave."

heejun lowered his gun as the men left, and picked up his now very wet guitar from the floor.
"dickheads."

heejun walked into a small, unknown pub on the street's corner. over time, he'd become a local there;
it was the only pub you could get alcohol cheap, and they sometimes
offered him money to play there.

he tossed his jacket and guitar
onto a chair, before heading straight
to the bar.

"back again already?"
the bartender asked, wiping the inside of a glass ready. heejun simply gave him a side eyed glare as he sat down, slamming his money on the table.

"give me the strongest drink you've got, i want whatever i can get with this cash."

the bartender sighed and gave heejun a concerned look, before nodding hesitantly and making the drink,
"okay, but please, don't drink too much, i know how hard you work
for that money, and it'd be a waste to use it all on alcohol."

he smiled loosely, while heejun just rolled his eyes, snatching the
freshly made drink and chugging
it back in one shot.
he placed the glass down
aggressively and winced slightly,
"it's fucking disgusting."

"you asked for the strongest,
not the nicest."
the bartender shrugged, playing dumb a little, unintentionally pissing off heejun just that little bit more.

"what time do you close?"
heejun asked, his voice hoarse.

"i told you before, we close at
midnight, but i'm fine with staying
open a little longer for you."

heejun coughed,
"don't bullshit me."

the bartender's face
became serious,
"where are you sleeping tonight?

heejun didn't respond.

"heejun."

"what does it matter to you?"

the bartender slammed his hands
down, causing other customers to
glance back,
"heejun, listen. i know you think
you're old enough to take care of
yourself, but either way, you're still
just a kid. you're nineteen for gods sake, and while i know you have a gun, that won't do you any good if a gang approaches you. plus you're
a foreigner, and you know that puts you more at risk."

heejun threw his glass at the floor
in anger, smashing it and picking up his stuff, before glaring back at the bartender,
"fuck you. fuck you and your fucking pity. it's been like this long enough, i know how to fucking take care of myself, so just, stay out of it."
he threw his jacket around his shoulders and left abruptly.

"i really hope that kid finds someone who can help him..."
the bartender spoke, as he began to clean up the glass.

"that old fucker..!"
heejun yelled aloud, clenching his
fists in anger before storming away from the bar.
he checked his pocket, feeling if both
his cash and gun were still there.
'thank fuck.'

he sighed in relief, as a ladder hanging from a building suddenly caught his eye.

heejun glanced around, checking
for anyone nearby,
"fuck it, it's better than sleeping
on the streets."

heejun swung his guitar over
his shoulder and grabbed onto the
dripping ladder bar, pulling himself
up quickly. he climbed the ladder, nearly slipping off halfway and hurled himself up at the top of the building.

"ha, it's actually better than i
thought," he laughed a little, smiling to himself and walking over to a
small shed at the rooftop's corner.

heejun glanced inside, checking for
anything alive or dangerous
before opening the door.
"shit, this is actually pretty good."

the shed was completely empty, and clean, with only tiny holes in the
sides. he walked in and set down
his guitar before laughing; there
were no drafts, no leaks, it was perfect. after sleeping on filthy concrete pavements for some long, anyone would be happy to just
stumble across a perfect shelter.

"ah, i should probably pull the
ladder up just to be safe."
heejun remembered, quickly pulling himself out of the happiness and rushing to the edge of the building to grab the ladder. it was heavier than he thought, and he nearly fell off the edge in the process, but the ladder was up.

he stood up, and paused for a moment, looking up at the night sky.

"how, on such a rainy night, can the sky be this beautiful?"

heejun smiled softly as the rain fell
on his face.

for the first time in a long time, he
was happy, he was safe, and to him, that meant so much.

"the night sky..."
he muttered, as he let down his
hood,

"maybe the world isn't so shit
after all."

- ♡ -