━ { 1999; january.

it's an old photograph.

nothing, muses eunyoung, in this house is a reminder of those days; they don't talk about them, not anymore. they talk about graduation sometimes, or walking home together after school, or the wedding, or college, or buying the apartment that they're now moving out of. eunyoung had had to stand on her tiptoes on a stool to reach that unpacked box at the top of the closet. now, she understands why it was so well hidden.

it's an old photograph; they all just look so young, the three of them. jungho's got that grin of his that's only faded a little bit in all these years, the one that makes his face look sharp and inviting at the same time, and his hair is all in his face, sweaty from his soccer game. (he stopped playing after high school - i just need to get serious, he'd said, and it sounded right, so nobody questioned it.) eunyoung's dwarfed by the two of them - her hair is black and neatly tied into two braids, and her smile is wide and bright. (she liked going to games, before she loved jungho - or before she liked him, really. she doesn't watch them anymore. she has no reason to.)

and jihwan  -

jihwan.

jihwan's smile is a little less than jungho's and eunyoung's - he only went to the games because jungho was playing in them and eunyoung was cheering for them, after all. he always liked books more than he liked sports, she remembers. he's carrying his bag, the little black one, so he must have a book in there - if eunyoung stretches her mind enough, she'll be able to know which one it was, she's sure of it. his hair is neat, like always, and his hands are stuffed in his pockets.

she doesn't notice that her hands are shaking until she flips it over - it's dated may 1990, with a little smiley face. (jungho must've written it, then.) nine years - it can't actually be 1999, can it? is she really 26? is she really married? 

has any time passed since that monday, when the principal song announced that third-year student hong jihwan had been hit by a car the day before, when she cried into jungho's chest and jungho cried into her hair? when he kissed her forehead and apologized over and over, even though it wasn't his fault, or hers? 

there was nothing either of them could've done - eunyoung knows that, she's always known that - and it might be an old photograph, but it still managed to rip the bandage from her wound.

she looks at her watch, when she can tear her eyes from the photograph - jungho will be home any minute, she realizes. "i'd better keep working," she mumbles. she puts the photo back in the box, burying it underneath pictures of the rest of her life.

she then puts her hands on her stomach and breathes deeply. being this stressed can't be good for the baby. 

━ { 2010; october.

it's an old photograph.

it's an old photograph, but jihwan likes remembering his friends like this. he doesn't have the right to remember them otherwise - he knows that facebook is a thing, now, though he's not too sure exactly how it works, and he knows how to get on the library's computers, but he doesn't dare look at jungho or eunyoung's profile.

it's his punishment - that's always how he's rationalized it in his head, at least. it's his fault for dying, for leaving them both alone, for being too much of an idiot to see that car coming. so he doesn't get to see his best friends past the age of 18, since they got even less time with him in the first place.

(it's a lie. he knows he's a lot more selfish than that, even though he refuses to admit it. he doesn't want to see them living happy lives with each other, like he always knew they would, because, , he's been seventeen for years now, and his real punishment is being trapped in love with two people at once.)

but it's alright, because their smiles in their school photos are more than worth it. he smiles, just a little, as he flicks to the same page as usual.

he closes his eyes, and allows himself to be seen for a few seconds. but then he hears the familiar footsteps of the library aide, and disappears. the yearbook drops to the ground with a thump. 

the library aide is a girl named lee hyojin - not like anyone remembers - with big glasses and a loose ponytail. "what the hell is so special about 1991?" she grumbles, as she puts the book on the shelf.

as she leaves, jihwan makes a mental note to write her a note saying sorry before he starts reading again.

(author's note) well! here we are. the quote up there is a quote from legends of tomorrow because...well, because i was watching the episode (the magnificent eight, if you care...) while i wrote this and it sort of fit? so. here's a bit of jihwan's story, as well as park eunyoung and jang jungho, who are his binding. i didn't want to tell too much of jihwan's story, but i do think i got the point across, so we're good, right? c/c is always appreciated and you can use any of these characters in your app, if you'd like. <3 unbeta'd.