Got nothinā better to do, the kid says, and Sungjoon laughs. Hardly more than an exhale, but he can relate. Even when heās working, itās still a fucking waste of time. If he can skip out on his obligations long enough to make it up to Jung-gu one of these days, he might just take Jo up on that.
He follows into the unfinished space, and itās no surprise to anyone that his eyes are automatically drawn to the guitars. The rest of the room is a bit of a mess, but those, at least, are kept apart from the chaos. They look in good condition. The amps look decent too, though itās not like he can afford to be picky. He hasnāt owned one since high school.
And though itās tempting to go take a closer look, to plug one in and see how it feels in his hands, there is too much unexplored territory on the other side of that wall. He heads through the door without preamble, taking in the layout of the shop before finding a place to start.
There are all the requisite stand-bys every self-respecting record shop has ā his eyes skim over metalāalt-metalānĆ¼-metalāblack metalādeath metal to punkāpost-punkānew waveāgoth rockāgrunge. Thereās mainstream and obscure, foreign and domestic ā a more exhaustive stock than most stores heās been in. Heās impressed. Itās not until he reaches a rack prominently placed near the registers that he stops.
And takes a breath. One day, if heās lucky.
āNice,ā he mutters to Jo, indicating the varied selection of local bands here. He picks up a CD at random, thinking heās seen the name somewhere before. Maybe the lineup board outside Club FF. Itās really been too long.
āHavenāt been to Hongdae lately,ā he confesses, because itās entirely too soon to suggest the idea thatās occurred to him, sending nerves and excitement coursing through his veins. Heās wanted this for years, just never had the motivation or the connections to make reaching for it possible. He pushes the thought down for now, promising the sinking in his stomach that heāll revisit it as soon as he can. Once he knows if he can count Jo as a friend. āUsed to be a couple places you could count on for a good show. Wonder if theyāre still alive, though. Everybody says all the big clubs are goinā downhill.ā
When his new companion enters his space, he feels something close to excitement. He loves to show off his small collection of odds and ends, kind of like some people like to show off pictures of their kids.
His bass turns three this year.
After theyāre both safely inside, he pulls down the garage door to about shin level. Seems a little creepy to close it all the way, but he doesnāt want anyone spotting his stuff and walking off, either.
And then he follows, flipping the lights on as he goes.
The storefront illuminates - showing off yellow and black walls covered in posters and old, scratched records. He thought about putting a disco ball in the corner, but decided that it might be a little tacky. Thatās not to say that the other decoration isnāt - just that itās less so. Heās trying to keep his image up.
He wants to watch the other guyās face as he takes everything in, but that would be creepy, too. So. he opts to take up his usual spot - a stool behind the register. If Sungjoon wants anything, he figures it wouldnāt be awful to open up shop for about two minutes. Legally, heās allowed to do what he wants.
āBeauty, isnāt it? I might be biased, but Iām of the opinion that this is the best record store in the city.ā
He grins. There are a few places around here that boast the lowest prices or the best selection, but none of them come close to what he has in stock. He may not always be the cheapest, but heāll always have the best quality. Thatās probably the only thing heās a real stickler about.
At the next statement, he snorts.
āMost of them arenāt what they used to be, sure, but the little ones are still going strong. Lotta indie bands on the scene, these days.ā He leans back.Ā āNot a lot of anything more... grungey. Everythingās too clean.ā
He sighs, perhaps a little wistfully, and eyes up the display in front of him.
āWish I could get my feet in the water and bring back whatās missing, you know? Thereās always that desire to go out and make change for the better, but they never tell you how hard it really is to sway the people.ā
