.two.

Jin was relieved when he thought about the fact that he had taken the bread without paying and got away with it. He leaned his head back on the brick wall and heaved a sigh of relief. But his conscience soon ate at him when another thought arrived in his mind. The little boy that had saved him from being turned into the police had paid the piece of bread for him, probably with the little amount of money he had to buy food that morning. Pulling the baguette out from its hiding place where it had been tucked away, Jin broke the piece of bread in half and offered it to the little boy slowly. "The least I can do is offer you half of my earnings, since you did save me back there."

The boy took one look at the bread, which Jin had gotten out from inside his pants, and crinkled up his nose in disgust. He then gave a shake of his head. "No thank you. You had that next to your genitals. And I also don't like to eat food I didn't buy for myself. For safety reasons."

The seventeen year old shrugged, not feeling as bad for him anymore. He had the audacity to turn down food. Jin could never do such a thing. "Suit yourself. I'll still eat it."

He said with a nonchalant shrug and took a big bite of his piece of bread like there was absolutely nothing wrong with it. It was all he had to eat for the day if he couldn't get anymore later. But it was enough to hold him and give him some energy at least until lunch time. Later he would probably search the dumpsters behind a restaurant for any left over food that may have been thrown in the waste basket. It wasn't his ideal way of getting food into his body. But he had learned early on that he would have to do those things if he wanted to survive.

"You know..." The little boy started with a suggestion, his words slightly hesitant. He barely knew Jin, but he thought about solidarity between homeless children. He also thought that having an older friend would be beneficial for him as well. They could look after each other. Baekhap was only twelve years old, but was small and skinny. The other homeless children sometimes bullied him into giving them his money, and since they were bigger and stronger, he always had no choice but to comply. But with Jin, he would have someone to watch over him. In exchange, Baekhap could help him out as well. "We could stick together and you could come with me to where I work. We could even be buddies if you wanted to. Its tough out there and I don't really have anyone."

Jin raised and eyebrow at him with confusion. How could that little boy have a job? No one would employ him, much less a twelve year old. They were kids and the adults usually thought kids weren't skilled at anything.

Noticing his skepticism, Baekhap continued to explain. "Well...I don't have a real job. But I stand on street corners and clean windshields for loose change. I also help old people carry their bags to their car and load them in the trunk. Its not a lot of money, but it helps me get some food in my belly decently."

The seventeen year old felt a prick in his chest, which is what the twelve year old wanted. He was just a kid, yet he was refusing to resort to what Jin was doing. He was instead using other methods to make some money. It was probably not enough to keep him sheltered and fed, but it was his own earned money and he didn't have to run away from the authorities every once in a while. It was a thought that was appealing to Jin, making some money to actually buy food for himself. But he quickly felt discouraged when he realized he really didn't know how to do anything.

He had been around Baekhap's age when his parents died and he was on the streets since then. He never learned how to do anything. He could barely even read and write. He mostly knew the basics because he had stopped going to school at such a young age.

"I don't know how to do it though." Jin said nervously, looking down at his hands. He had never washed a window in his life. He figured it couldn't be too difficult. But when one didn't know how to do something, everything was difficult. 

"Its easy. I'll teach you." Baekhap offered with a smile. 

At that, Jin found himself smiling. Perhaps it was for the better for him to learn something that could earn him some money so that he could at least stop stealing. The twelve year old boy held his hand out for them to shake on it, making it official. 

Jin stared at his hand for a moment, taking a little longer than he should have, in hesitation. There was a smile on his face as he took the little boy's hand in his, giving it a shake. "Deal."

When they pulled their hands away, the twelve year old got back on his feet. "Come on." He said to Jin, urging him to get up.

Jin watched with confusion again but got back on his feet too. He wanted to learn how to fend for himself, but he didn't think they'd be starting so soon. But Baekhap was more than willing to start already. 

"Wait. We're starting now?" Jin wondered with surprise.

The twelve year old nodded and said matter-of-factly. "Yeah. I haven't had any breakfast yet and I gave the baker the few cents I had left over from yesterday. You already ate, but now you gotta help me earn some money for my breakfast."

Jin couldn't help but heave a sigh at his words. But he supposed that was fair and that he should help him out. He had already ate thanks to Baekhap, and the least he could do was to help him earn some money to get something to eat. "Alright. Let's go. But once you have enough money for breakfast we're taking a little break."

The little boy giggled at that. "Only five minutes break and then we gotta work to buy some lunch. Then we can eat and rest for a bit and earn some more money for dinner."

"Maybe I'll go back to stealing." Jin said jokingly.

-

okay guys so we have the second chapter for this story. i hope you're all liking it so far. this is all mostly exposition. but it will start to get good soon, i promise. just keep on reading and supporting this.

thank you all for everything. 

have a wonderful night and happy halloween. day of the dead is coming soon too so get ready to watch coco. im a proud mexican so that movie and spooky season are my ultimate mood. so for me, i am at home. i am in my element. you all should see my room. i have skulls and lights everywhere.

-clary