*Flashback*

“I’m going to catch you!” you ran after him, barefoot on the grass.

The azure blue sky bore the shiniest most golden sun with cotton-ball clouds dancing all over. A tint of gold from the sun outlined the grass adding to the different shades it was already wearing. The mud underneath the green leaves felt fresh on your skin, almost as fresh as the air that hugged you calmly, with a hint of chaos. A total of three trees had marked their territory around the vicinity. None of them were green though. A beautiful shade of lavender and lilac fought with each other for power against the bluish sky and creamy clouds. Cherry blossoms were nature’s own goddess and she had a story of her own that day.

The serenity had captured your company to an extent that you forgot for a moment the reason you were running after this boy. The slender figure looked back as he got further away from you, flashing the glint in his eyes. His bouncy fawn hair blazed under the rays God had bestowed upon him at that moment. He crinkled his nose as the folds under his eye squeezed themselves to each side of his either eye.

“You can never catch me! I am way too fast.”

You loved watching him laugh. It was your favourite pastime and you could spend hours drowning yourself in the grins that the world was yet to discover, that was only yours. Engrossed in the moment of admiration, you failed to notice anything else in your horizon. Ergo, your foot trapped itself on a stone and you descended towards the ground with a loud shriek.

The boy immediately stopped on his tracks and ran back to you, worry smeared on his face.

“Aerum are you okay!!” he said as he slightly picked up your leg and placed it on his lap. You adjusted your body on the ground, leaning against your elbows.

“It hurt’s Dae” you mumbled as a tear rolled own you cheek. “Ouch!”

He had located the source of you pain and slightly rubbed his thumb over the bruised skin.

“Shh...stay still I will fix it” he assured you, “close your eyes”

You obeyed his orders like usual and shut your eye lids, detaching yourself from your thoughts momentarily.

A sweet voice echoed from the essence that encircled you as the words danced in your ears.

“Somewhere over the rainbow…Way up high…And the dreams that you dreamed of…Once in a lullaby” Daehyun sang the words matching the rhythm of his soft hand that caressed your wound.

“Somewhere over the rainbow…Blue birds fly…And the dreams that you dreamed of…Dreams really do come true ooh oh” he continued singing as a smile painted your face.

You had forgotten everything that had existed a second earlier. All the beauty nature had engrossed you in was automatically over powered by something more beautiful, something more soothing. His voice. The melody in his voice took you into an imaginary dreamland, as you rode the high. The pain that had earlier soared through your limb had suddenly disappeared after you and let you escape the barbarous reality.

You opened your eyes for a moment only to meet his adoring gaze as he spoke with the same serenity.

“And now your favourite part,” he paused before picking up the tune again.

“Someday I'll wish upon a star…Wake up where the clouds are far behind me…Where trouble melts like lemon drops…High above the chimney top”

You sat up straight before he could dictate the words you so eagerly longed for.

“That's where you'll find me.” He finished with a high note which cracked his voice, making the both of you chuckle.

“Why do you like this part so much?” he asked fluttering his eyes at you.

“Because that’s where I find you” you replied with a slight nudge on his nose as he let out a shy titter.

He moved his gaze down to his hand that carefully hosted your injured foot and said,

“Told you I’ll make it better… or no, actually I’ll sing it better. Forever” he said still keeping his stare fixed on his hands.

“What if I hurt myself again?” you asked

“I’ll sing it better again”

“Mmm what if our homeroom teacher scolds me and makes me cry” you pouted at him.

“Well let’s see, I’ll sing it better” he grinned your way.

“And what if the boy I like hurts me?” you joked.

“He won’t”

“What?”

“Nothing. I’ll sing it better”

*End of flashback*

 

“Woohooo hyung! You are really cheeky aren’t you? We had no idea!” Zelo shrieked as he made his way towards Daehyun presenting his congratulatory hug. Your were brought right back to reality with the sound of claps that echoed around the room. One by one all the boys passed on their good wishes to the newly discovered couple, as well as Jackson who glanced at you for a second before following the others. Only you remained seated with Youngjae’s company. The boy was staring at you so intently as if he had so much he had to say, so much he had to ask, but he remained silent. As did you.

The most immediate feeling that went through you was a state of numbness with a slight discomfort at the pit of your stomach. Despair, that followed had no explanation. Momentarily, the only presence you could feel was yours and his, as your mind blocked out everyone else. Still fixating your gaze on the rather gloomy carpet, you struggled for a breath which came in short, torturous gasps. Part of you wanted to get up and charge at him with questions unanswered. But, the other half of you was the recipient of the millions of daggers that shot through your heart.

Within minutes you were left to ashes as agony burnt your insides. Not even a tear would come out, afraid of being evaporated by the flame that took over your eyes. Where was all of this last night, when he held you so close to him? Were you really stupid to hope for something beyond that moment or, was he just heartless? Your feet weighed in tons, cemented to the ground, as your heart pounded against your chest. A moment longer and it would tear its way out of its place. You watched as your world came crashing down causing your brain to coil downwards to an array of depressing thoughts.

“Come on, let’s go.” Youngjae said placing a hand in front of you. You hadn’t noticed he was standing in front of you, shading you from the raucous that took place behind him, till he made the gesture.

Your mind, right then, wasn’t yours anymore as you failed to process simple information that came from the surrounding. You looked up to the only pair of eyes that looked back at you, as your quivering lips managed to speak.

“Go..wh..ere?”

“Anywhere. Just out of here.” Youngjae voiced his determination.

“No” you spoke unable to grasp a control over the words that escaped your mouth. “I need to congratulate my best friend.”

You jerked up from the chair that had both you and your senses bolted thus far. As you passed the boy who was shielding you, your eyes fell upon the one you were being shielded from. From the space ship afar, you took a look at his world and your absence in it. Everyone was laughing, joking, and patting him on the back, not caring about the hell you were stranded upon. You stepped forward as you felt a hold around your arm pulling you back from the hurt you were about to cause yourself. Youngjae stood there gripping your hand, not saying a word.

Suddenly, the man of the hour stepped forward from the crowd and stood in full flesh in front of you. The other boy let go of his hold on you as your best friend spoke.

“Aerum..”

“Congratulations Dae” you faked a smile. All the muscles in your body worked in unison trying to stop the tear that was so close to falling. The lump in your throat grew till you couldn’t swallow anymore, but you managed. Every breath you took burnt your lungs signaling your brain to stop inhaling the air. Death seemed like a reasonable option.

“Thank you so much! I am so happy to finally be able to tell you!” he genuinely seemed happy twisting the already positioned dagger in your heart. First left and then right. “Come meet-“

“Dae I have to go somewhere” you cut him off before he could finish the sentence. You couldn’t do what he was about to ask you. At least not right then. Murder was a formidable option but it wasn’t impossible. You couldn’t leave it to chance so you turned around and left the room that had brought you more pain in the past fifteen minutes than you had the courage you recover from.

Youngjae stared right into Daehyun’s eyes for a good long minute before exiting the conference room behind you.

The corridor seemed narrower than it had before. The walls on each side competed to engulf your body, crashing every bone on you. The claustrophobia you did not know existed began to kick in as you ran to escape from your invisible perpetuator. Your heart pounded against your chest, one loud thud at a time, as everything in your surrounding dragged them in a haze from which you couldn’t blink to recovery.

The remaining senses around your hand found a door to the left as you dragged your body through the carpeted room. The sound that buzzed through your ear into your brain suddenly came to a halt as you entered the room. You clutched on to the wall hoping it’d hold your fall. Your breaths came short and fast as you violently fought for the next. You needed to cry, scream your lungs out, if that would stop the pain that ached through your body.

The door beside you slammed open as Youngjae entered the small space, occupying the oxygen better than you. He found his way towards you as your body slid down the length of the wall on to the ground. You clasped on to your knees bringing them closer to your chest. Nothing numbed the pain.

Youngjae sat down in front of you and held your arms tight with his hands, unable to say much.

“Aerum..”

“Youngjae..” you managed between your aggressive breaths, “will you sing it better?”

“What?” he asked, confusion painted all over his face.

“Sing a song for me.”

“Sure…erm…which one?”

“Over the…” after a long pause you continued as little sniffs of air rushed through your lips, “rainbow”

He slowly raised one arm to the back of your head and pulled you in closer to his chest, hiding your face in his jacket. As he brushed his lean fingers through your hair, his sweet voice sang,

“Somewhere over the rainbow…Way up high…And the dreams that you dreamed of…Once in a lullaby”

As the verse ended a tear began to roll down the curves of your cheek, ending its path on top of your lips. Once that first tear broke free, the rest followed in an unbroken stream. The flow of tears got heavier and heavier as your chest moved up and down reciprocating to your uneven breaths. You leaned forward pressing your face down hard against his chest. Through the anarchy of thoughts in your mind, you were unable to feel the heartbeat roaring under Youngjae’s rib cage.

He continued singing, “Somewhere over the rainbow…Blue birds fly…” failing to make it better as he patted your back.

Outside the room Daehyun leaned against the wall clutching on to the proximity of his heart as he swallowed his pain, gulp after gulp.

No one was making it better for him either.