Love Again

79. The Other Side Of Me

Being a person who'd often felt guilty, Niel couldn't stop thinking about how open ended their last conversation had concluded with his fated. Upon pondering over their argument repetitively, his guilty consience forced him to go insearch of Elric.

"Another altimatum... Where do I get the courage to waste time like this? ...Or perhaps he thought I left to the states again? Still, that asshole messed up my phone and now nobody believes I can pay up my rent." He'd thought to himself after he'd temporarily relocated to his grandparents house.

Additionally, having booked the same schedule to attend the last class, he later was notified of Elric's early attendance due to personal reasons. He wanted to contact him but he hadn't yet replaced his cellphone. He felt helpless without it that it had forced him to physically go in search of available rentals with no success. No one was willing to rent out their place to someone who had no proof of paying rent and the fact that he was not contactable to potential property owners made his situation worse. After a while, he contemplated on getting a part time job as soon as possible even if it meant commuting back and forth from his grandparents far off home.

It was easy finding Elric's enormous house. He'd previously helped Yeon's father get there since the fire incident three weeks ago and when he'd arrived, he felt relieved to not have caught the sight of Elric's mother. The help received him and showed him where Elric's room was. Apparently, the staff remembered him from Elric's pictures of him...another matter he wished to follow up with Elric later.

"That sneaky bastard!"

Apparently, Elric had left instructions not be disturbed while working however, the help advised Niel to enter without knocking claiming Elric got startled easily. She'd been right for Elric was completely engrossed in watever he was doing. He'd never set eyes on Elric reading a book. Not even once and with his back facing the door, he'd swiveled the chair to face the window that he didn't notice when Niel walked in from behind.

Niel crept quietly behind him and didn't say a word until he'd been close enough yet away from Elric's view.

He appeared to be typing something Niel did not want to bother him therefore, he took his time to scan the papers on the table, each categorized and labeled differently. Skimming through without touching them, they seemed to be concerning the case Elric and his mother were working on.

He further walked around the enormous room, wondering to himself how Elric might have felt lonely growing up here. Everything was immaculately set. His room oozed elegance and boasted expensively. He wondered to himself how Elric must have felt sleeping in that cheap motel he'd left him in. Maybe that's why he insisted on them moving to his apartment.

Walking back towards his fated, Niel decided to make his presence known and when a startled Elric turned his head to look up, a broad smile formed on his face at the sight of Niel.

"How long have you been standing there?" Elric asked while he took off his spectacles.

"A while."

"I guess you can miss someone too, huh?" Elric teased as he swiveled his seat to face Niel then placed his laptop on the table.

"I've never seen you this serious before. You come out as someone who doesn't care about school and stuff."

"Everyone in my family is either a lawyer or practicing the same field. My parents were rivals from different prominent law firms too so even if I were to refuse this path, it would eventually catch up to me. Handling the current case is not my first assignment anyway. I've worked with my mother on many occasions that I've lost count. I can practice law perfectly, but I can't take a case alone just yet."