* ♪ – a little freedom
the kim family’s music store is sort of like a second home.
well, maybe that’s not really accurate. that feels too...permanent, for someone that doesn’t really even have a first home; doesn’t even know if home exists. it’s just a saying. he likes it here. that’s what matters.
everyone is friendly and knows his name and kian’s family keeps inviting him over and he keeps politely declining because despite the amount of therapy he’s been to, it’s still hard to accept help–– or kindness, really ––from anyone. normal, loving families make him uncomfortable, at no fault of their own whatsoever. whenever he sees decent parents with a happy child he feels both relief and envy at once, because they don’t have to experience what he experienced. that’s great for them. not so great for joomi, but what’s done for him is done now, and he tries not to think about his parents too much anymore. he just quietly hopes his mother is still alive and reminds himself that he was their responsibility, not the other way around. they failed him, so in the end, he owes them nothing.
thankfully, most of the time, when he’s in this music store, he doesn’t think about any of that. he browses the instruments and talks to familiar faces he runs into; looks at sheet music to steal ideas and checks to see what kind of cds and records they still sell in this digital age.
this time, he also checks around for anything that might benefit his new band, still in the works. he’s planning ahead, though, for future shows and rehearsals, because he’s determined to make it work and for someone that is rarely enthusiastic, he’s excited about this. he is, of course, not the most confident in his ability to head a band. it’s not just performing with most of the spotlight on him, but booking shows, directing the other band members, leadership; everything. he figures the performance can’t be any worse than anything he did on next gen, so he can at least do that much, and the rest...he can learn on the job, right? he can do it.
there is one very special thing he’s at the shop for on the band’s behalf; make that a special someone. he’s been, for lack of a better term, shopping around for people to join the new band, and he’s pretty sure kian is high on the best possible candidates for a bandmate list. joomi knows he’s incredibly talented. he can probably fill any role in the band, and he’s also incredibly kind and eager to do...just about everything he does.
joomi is a little worried about exposing him to the scene though. kian is also quite innocent and a bit naive. it’s not a bad thing; it just might be bad if he wants to safely join a punk band and remain safe. it’ll be a big responsibility for joomi to look out for him, but the pros outweigh the cons. he can’t resist at least asking.
he strides up to the counter, nothing but some guitar picks and guitar strings to buy, but he’s happy to see kian behind it. “hey. i was hoping i’d see you,” joomi says with a close-lipped smile. “do you want some small talk about what we’ve been up to or do you want me to jump straight to what i have to ask you? nothing bad.”
* –– @kianbe
