5 THE WAREHOUSE
Dinner had ended and Noah helped clean the table and do the dishes with his mom and sisters.
"My son is going become a neurosurgeon and alumni of La Scala," Sonny said giddily as she wiped the plate with a clean cloth. She began humming a slow song and moving her body in line with the tune.
"With me as a doctor, I will cure old age and make younger again." Noah joked.
"I can't wait for you to learn sorcery then," Sonny uttered before she began laughing. Noah chuckled and smiled at his mother.
Although she smiled a lot, even when she wasn't happy, her smile at times look as if they carry a weight that was about to drag her down. But tonight, Sonny's smile was radiant.
Noah watched this and leaned by the sink, he smiled and said; "If becoming a neurosurgeon will make you smile this much, I'll have to become the best one out there. That way, your smile will be brighter."
"Awww!! You are such a sweet talker. I wonder when you are going to bring a girlfriend back home… or at least, a friend."
"Here we go again." He chuckled nervously.
"Mommy, maybe he's going to get a super-rich girlfriend in La Scala. I hope that he does, then she would have to curry my favor if she wants to remain with my Oppa, and my favor is very expensive. She would have to use her riches to gain my favor." Sophia giggled. She meant what she said.
Sophia rubbed off Noah's attitude for money.
"Don't be materialistic Sophia, it's the character and ideals that matter." Sonny lectured.
"You should go and rest, you need it," Sonny said to Noah.
"I don't think I can do that now, I need to go out for a run and clear my head a bit." He forced a smile as he said.
"Sure thing, you go do what you need to do. Just make sure that you come back home early, the streets are always dangerous at night. Especially this street of ours." Sonny cautioned.
"Don't worry about me mom, I can take care of any danger that comes my way. But ultimately, I will be careful." Noah added quickly. If he had ended his sentence like that, he knew that his mom wouldn't have allowed him to go anywhere tonight.
And for him, it was necessary that he went out to clear his head…
"Alright, that's a good boy." Sonny approached him and made him bend his back a bit by dragging his shirt. She kissed his left cheek, and while she was doing that, Sophia saw it as a chance for her to do the same.
She also kissed her brother's cheek for the second time that night. This was something that rarely happened because Noah wasn't the type that liked physical contact so much. Whenever they tried to hug or express their familiar love physically, he always rejected it.
Isabella saw this and her jaw fell to the counter, she used her hands to scatter her hair crazily. Isabella wanted to ask her mom to hold Noah down, but she knew that it wasn't going to happen no matter how much she begged. She sighed and looked at Sophia with jealousy.
"Lucky girl." She muttered and blew the strands of hair that fell on her face.
Noah noticed Isabella's reaction and chuckled at her.
"It's just a peck, I wonder why you wouldn't let me peck your cheek." She uttered in annoyance.
"Who knows where your lips have been?" Noah mentioned.
Isabella gasped and her face began turning red, she was blushing furiously and didn't have any reply for her brother.
Noah was about to smile, but his mom slapped the back of his head with a little force behind her strike. "That's a bit too much, don't you think?" She questioned with a frown.
"Mom, I was just saying." Noah pretended as if the slap hurt him. He used his hand to rub the spot that she hit. His reply only made her frown firmer.
"Besides, I was just playing." He quickly left the kitchen and went to his room.
Sophia stayed beside Isabella and attempted to comfort her. "Don't worry too much about what Oppa says, Bella. You know that he doesn't mean most of the harsh things that he says."
"I know, but, his words and timing always seem to hit." She pouted.
…
Noah changed his clothes. He wore a white sleeveless shirt and ash sweatpants, topping it up with a zip-up hoodie. He picked his old sketchers shoe and made his way out of the apartment. While walking down the stairs, he noticed someone seated on one side of the stairway.
He had long, straight, and thick black hair that extended to the lower parts of his neck. From his stature, Noah could tell who it was.
It was Haeun, his body wasn't exactly big. He stood at the height of 5'9. His face lacked beards but possessed thick and long brows.
When Noah reached his side, he looked at Haeun who had passed out, drunk on the stairway. Haeun wasn't exactly handsome, but he did have his attractive traits.
Because of Haeun, his mother and sisters had to go through a lot. Noah and Isabella went to the same high school and graduated last year. But due to their financial inability, they had to stay at home.
Now if this only affected Noah, he wouldn't have cared this much, after all, they had already done a lot by raising him since the death of his biological parents. Noah had confidence in his brain and his ability.
Whatever he set his mind to do, as long as the process to achieving that thing can be manipulated and decided by him, then he would be able to achieve it.
In high school, he never faltered. To him studying wasn't hard.
Noah covered his nose with the sleeve of his hoodie, Haeun reeked of alcohol. "Pathetic." He felt the urge to spit on Haeun but he resisted it, barely.
He scoffed and left.
Noah began with long but steady strides, after doing that for about 10 minutes, he began jogging. Speeding through the streets, Noah had been jugging for over 30 minutes now.
His armpit and back areas of his shirt were soaked with sweat now.
Suddenly he stopped by an iron net fence that was about 12ft high and bent to catch his breath. Behind the fence was an abandoned warehouse whose walls had been designed with confetti and spray paint.
While he was trying to catch his breath, he was also checking surroundings out, trying to see if there was anyone around.
After a minute he stood straight and put his hoodie over his head. Noah charged at the fence, he jumped and used his left leg to step on it, using the momentum to push himself higher.
Before reaching his peak, Noah's hands grabbed the rail at the top of the fence and used it to drag himself up. In a minute, he scaled the fence like it was a walk in the park.
After crossing the fence, Noah circled the abandoned warehouse until he reached the front door of the warehouse. The doors looked reinforced and strong.
Unlike the rest of the building, the double doors of the warehouse didn't have any confetti, drawing, or spray paint on them.
When he got closer to the, it was opened. "Welcome back champ, thought you quit coming over, we have missed you. Betting ain't what it used to be without you in the equation." A big, hefty man with a flame tattoo by the left side of his head, greeted. This man was about 6'6" but his voice was calm and serene.
"Crocker! I didn't think I was going to come back here too." Noah intoned.
"So what's up? Are you here for a match?" The big bouncer named Crocker asked.
"Nah, I just need to meet that weasel, that's all. I'm not here for a fight." Noah answered.
"That's unfortunate, I would have made a thousand bucks tonight." He raised his fist and Noah bumped knuckles with him.
'It does feel good to be back here though.' Noah thought as he went deeper into the warehouse. He could hear the cheers and cries of people coming from the distance.
Usually, people aren't allowed to come in from the front door, only recognized individuals could use the door. Noah was something like a VIP in this place. From the front door of the warehouse, there was a stairway then an elevator that leads to the third and fourth floor.
This stairway and elevator are the only ways to get to the third floor and fourth floor. All other doors that lead to those floors are heavily guarded and out of service.
When he reached the third floor, Noah walked to the edge of the floor, where a waist-height barricade was, and gazed down.
"Yeah!!!" The crowd cheered.
"Punch his fucking face. Puta!!" Someone amidst the cheering crowd cursed.
Some of them had a few euros in their palms.
The cheering was coming from the second floor, everyone there was watching the two topless individuals on the first-floor beat themselves up. There was blood, teeth, and saliva on the pillars of the first floor and on the ground too.
This was one of the uses of this abandoned warehouse, it is where illegal fistfights were hosted.
Noah got thrilled by the sight of this for a second, he too used to be a fighter that dominated the first floor of this warehouse…
