Track 1
▻ Juniel  - Illa Illa

A first love is like a child, a first love is inexperienced...

It’s been roughly five years since Joshua last set foot in the busy streets of New York. Today, after five years, he endures a few hours’ plane ride (for driving alone proves to be tiring, dangerous, and impractical) for a special occasion, though not totally something that calls for a celebration.

He had his earphones on and he hears a few familiar strums of the guitar string, a female voice following suit. It’s been a couple of years since this song has been released but he still keeps it in his playlist, as if some compelling force tells him to keep the file as it is placed.

-

The playground was just across him from the street, and he’s back to being the eight-year-old Joshua Hong, unsuspecting person in the streets of New York, and a wanderer of the jungle gym. Little did he know that he becomes best friend of Vernon Chwe, Korean-American, for both of them were excited to know that they weren’t alone in being an Asian person in this sea of people born and raised with Western blood.

Since that day, they’ve been inseparable, and being naive children, made a pinky promise that they would be best friends forever, no matter what. It lasted for about five months, where Jisoo always stops by the playground after his class and spend the rest of the afternoon with Vernon.

But one day, Joshua had an unannounced one-way trip to Los Angeles, and a week after that was the last day Hansol ever waited in their promised playground. The separation may have been painful for the both of them, but neither chooses to lose hope in meeting each other again.

--

Track 2

▻ San E, Raina - A Midsummer Night’s Sweetness

Time goes by so fast, we’ve already come all this way

The streets seemed to be more packed the last time he visited. However, his favorite flower shop was still there, the display of white roses reminiscent of the time when he was a young, reckless teenager, who has yet to know much about life. Another female artist plays as the previous track finishes, which was then soon followed by a rap, the story and tone reminding him of those years back then, when everything was happy for him, for them.

-

Years have passed and technology was becoming more advanced, and it has come to the point when today’s generation would often sit home and play computer games, randomly chat strangers on Yahoo! Messenger, and sometimes, the people you talk to wouldn’t be so “random”. The world is too small for people, after all.

One day, Joshua, who was fishing for music to download on Limewire, came across user HVCswag_0298 on the search engine. It was a video of an album art, no name of the artist, just the title that to this day he could barely remember. And the song was Korean, a rap track apparently, and although the voice sounded like it belonged to someone younger, he sounded skilled. And the username was added on the description box.

Without hesitation, Joshua sent a message to the said user on Yahoo!Messenger. Little did he know, the other took only a short while to respond. It started with formal “hi”s, “hello”s, and “I heard your song, it sounds good.” until they started to give names. Joshua didn’t hesitate to give his, and as Vernon read the message, something inside him stirred with excitement.

A couple of conversations later on and one weekend they arranged to meet on the swings of the park they used to meet when they were kids. For the seven years they’ve missed, most of it about how they share their passion with music, albeit the difference in genre. Vernon was more of a hip-hop guy while Joshua leaned more to indie, pop, and acoustics.

Since then, their meetings have become more frequent, from twice a month to every week kind of meetings, and there even came a time that Vernon stayed in LA for a few days just to surprise Joshua.

When they hang out, they always talked about their interests on music, food, the sky, books, girls, and even anime; but none of them could mention about the interest they have on the other; about how the other has grown up to be handsome and dashing, about how the voices sounded sweeter than before, and about how they dazzled as if they were given birth by the stars.

--

Track 3

▻ U-Kiss - Love Of A Friend

We’re not friends, we’re not lovers, it hurts and I cry

On his way to where he should be, Joshua passed by a large-looking building where people with preppy outfits go in and out of its gates, some bringing books, and some bringing their boyfriends and girlfriends. He looks at the clear blue sky and thought of a couple of years ago, when he was their age, all having the worries of a good future. Soon a piano and chime sound followed by a soothing male voice played on his ears as the third song started to play. The rhythm takes him back to Joshua Hong, university student in Los Angeles.

-

The first few weeks of university was chill. He got to meet new friends and came across a couple of cool teachers for his subjects. He also got a few love letters slipped up in his bag that he surprisingly finds when he reaches home. And in the middle of researching for a couple of words they were tasked to define and use in a sentence, he checks on the green dot next to Vernon’s name on Facebook.

It wasn’t there and he becomes restless as it’s seven in the evening and the younger probably isn’t home at that time. Suddenly, Joshua wonders why he’s so worried about him. He knows they’re best friends, but he gets an excited feeling as he wakes up to messages from Vernon, often late replies from a day ago, or if he sees a picture of Vernon on his Facebook. Even the thought of meeting him tightens the knot in his stomach and chest.

He’s never felt this way before, until one night he decides to watch a movie. Apparently, it was a cliche romantic film to which he wouldn’t even bother remembering the title. But when the kiss scene happens, he just imagines Vernon’s lips on his, causing his cheeks to flush before grabbing the nearest pillow he has and throwing it to the wall. He’s seen a lot of attractive girls on campus and during his stay in different states, so why does he think of his best friend, a guy, of all people, to have a kiss with?

He decides to brush the thought off and goes back to researching. The first thing he sees, however, when he gets back on his Facebook, is a relationship status post from his best friend.

And since then he doesn’t know why but he got hurt, and even if he doused himself with a dozen and more excuses as to why his heart feels heavy, it just does, and he cries himself to sleep.

--

Track 4

▻ JYJ - In Heaven

Even if I regret, it’s too late, I can’t see you anymore

Joshua arrives at the destination he had in mind and sets the bouquet of white roses on the gravestone before him. He remembers how just they spent five years ago with each other. He reads the plaque with his best friend’s name over and over again. Before saying a silent prayer, a piano melody envelops his senses, and he feels the sadness embrace him, as if it was his best friend’s arms that pull him close. And he’s taken back to five years ago, the last time he set foot in this place.

-

It’s been a week after Joshua has graduated from university and he hears from his best friend not so long ago that he was on his way home after visiting some relatives from South Korea. The older now stands among the crowd in the arrival area in the JFKA, holding up a sign that says ‘You owe me pizza,’ which earned him a few weird looks from the people that he didn’t mind. When he sees someone that looks like his best friend approaching the area, his heart skips a beat, as if it hadn’t in a long while. However, Joshua has to remember that Vernon is still in a relationship, and they’re both guys, and what he’s feeling is wrong.

However, the person in the black beanie didn’t approach him, and when he took the hat off, it was actually someone else. Joshua then felt stupid for panicking over nothing. Not long after, the crowd’s murmurs became louder, a woman, probably someone’s mother, knelt and sobbed her heart out. When he paused to listen to his surroundings, he could hear the words “flight”, “bomb”, and “dead”. Three words were then enough to process what was going on.

He stood frozen on the spot, hearing different cries, pleas, prayers, and bursts of outrage all over him. He was going numb and his head felt light and spinning. Not long after, he fainted.

He woke up and first saw a woman, whose eyes were red and puffy, obviously from crying. When the blur of his eyesight went away, he realized it was Vernon’s mom, who also came to fetch their son at the airport, but they were too late.

“He talked a lot about you. Thank you for making him happy.” she said in between chokes and sobs, to which Joshua didn’t know how to respond to.

-

Everything else that happened was a blur; the crying, the news, the sight of his best friend’s dead body, and the funeral. However, if there was one thing that’s clear, it was his love for Vernon, a love that lives on forever.