Meanwhile, in the hall stood Ji-won, his eyes began to get irritated slightly because of the harsh brightness, as if his existence itself wasn’t lighting this fancy hall. Everything seemed so high quality, a place that’s hard for someone to fit in, yet he looked like he was at home, or rather a part of the furniture. In a daze, he stood idly by, and he looked up at the dangling chandelier. The crystals were made of glass, just like his heart. Then all of a sudden, he felt a strong brush against his shoulder. He did not fall, but he slightly stumbled and spilled his glass of champagne all over his suit. He closed his eyes and bit his lower lip in frustration, then he raised his head.

“What has you in such a hurry, madam?”

The woman looked clearly flustered, but she remained composed.

“I'm very sorry, I have something really important to do, I’ll contact you regarding the suit later!”

She ran off, leaving her business card in his hands and her perfume on his shoulder, the edges of the card soaked up the champagne, and the letters melted into insignificant ink. In this fleeting moment, the letters of her name remained, as fate refused for her name to be easily erased.

His eyes were slightly shaken, the smell of alcohol cleansed his mind, and he remained speechless. He wiped the champagne off his hands with his necktie and sat down on the couch. He took out a cigarette box from his pocket to smoke off his worries, he held the smoke in his heart for a few before he blew it out. Then he dozed off into his own thoughts, the type that keep him up all night like the images of the past. The past he had long shut away, but just like the sun’s yellow rays, they seep through the curtains in his head. Then he imagined a soft touch on his face, hands that ran along his cheeks and filled them with warmth, that warmth even for a moment, made everything fall back into place, even when the world had torn him apart. They belonged to his mother. He still remembers how warm she held him, though her face became harder to remember as time went by.

He heard the footsteps of his secretary approach, and he knew he would be confronted with a lot of nagging. He kept his eyes closed, pretending like he never noticed his presence.

“I only left for half an hour, and you already showered in alcohol?”

He said, staring him up and down.

“Spare me your shit Mr. Lee,”

He squinted his eyes as he ran his fingers through his black stained hair.

“Let’s talk in the car, I need a long bath to get this smell off.”

Joon-ho looked frustrated,

“Wear my suit, you’re going to walk through this crowded hall looking like that?”

Then Ji-won smirked at him as if he had gotten drunk off the alcohol on his skin.

“Don’t you know that nothing gets noticed in a crowd? Even if someone were to get stabbed, no one would notice until all the blood drains out and the stench of a dead body fills this glamorous hall.”

He said, smiling, as if he were just one hell of a psychopath.

“Who’s getting stabbed? Me? You’re too soft to do that, Ji-won, don’t fool yourself otherwise.”

He walked in front of him, with his back turned to him, as if he had no care in life about whatever nonsense he was talking about.

The sound of the engine broke the silence of the night, and the radio spoke a bunch of bullshit no one really cares about. He stared out the car’s window as he bit the skin on the tip of his fingers. He was met by tall buildings with neon lights as he looked out at the face of ordinary life. He was at the same level as other people, those who sat in the car next to him, or the couple that hugged under the flickering streetlights. Despite the bright colors of this world, he had already painted his in monochrome.

“Joon-ho… had this day been any longer, I really don’t think I would have been able to take it,”

Ji-won said with a soft, uncaring voice that did not reflect the meanings of the words he had just mumbled. He did not stutter, and his voice didn’t feel heavy; he was being vulnerable, but somehow, it didn’t feel that way.

“Take a nap, it's been a long day.”

Joon-ho spoke softly. His soothing voice was a reassurance that everything would be alright. Joon-ho was the older brother Ji-won never had; the calm in the midst of the storm, a person stronger than a mountain, never getting swayed by the emotions life carried through. He was an anchored ship that waves never stood a chance against, he was Ji-won’s pacesetter and a loyal friend.

Ji-won often thought to himself that maybe destiny would reunite them in another life, one as actual siblings, living like there was no tomorrow and carrying no worries on their backs. The only thing they’d have to carry would be each other. There was a saying Ji-won read about in a book once: a lover comes later in life, and parents go away too fast. The only ones who go through every phase of your life, from the beginning to the end, are your siblings, and that’s one thing Ji-won couldn’t stop thinking about.

After thinking for a while, Ji-won dozed off until he felt the turn into his home’s garage. He opened his eyes, and his eyes looked somehow even sadder than before, the type that slowly pulls you inside. He wasn’t the kind to cry. He only tears up after he yawns or when the lights are too bright. He walked out of the car and ran his hands through his black greasy hair. The bottom of his shoes was stained with mud, and he reeked of rotten grapes.

“Ahh, fuck, I’ll need new clothes, new shoes, and a haircut?”

He said to Joon-ho in a light-hearted way, squinting his eyes through a smile.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get you a designer brand… and a haircut?”

Joon-ho tilted his head in doubt.

“…You just need a shower.”

“…Right? That’s what I thought too. My hair is already short. If I get a haircut, people will ask if I’m enlisting in the military. Haha…”

—Ji-won

“You never had to. You’re Canadian, though, trust me, it’s not something you’d look forward to.”

—Joon-ho

“Yeah? You think so? I dunno, I thought it would be cool.”

Joon-ho was ready to call it a night and fared Ji-won goodbye for tonight.

Ji-won watched as Joon-ho drove off into the dark abyss, the headlights of his car slowly fading away behind the long path of tall maple trees. His father had planted those trees along the path long before Ji-won was born. It’s one of the few connections he has to Canada here. Ji-won felt a bit bitter, thinking about how everything he cares about slowly drifts away, like a lost ship into the darkness of the endless sea, where the moon is nowhere to be seen. Only small fragments of long-forgotten memories remain.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen the moon,”

He thought, perhaps it’s behind the rain clouds, or the polluted sky that hides the stars away.