Seungcheol. My mom. She passed away.

Ji.

Ji, I’m so sorry.

She was my only family. The only person who meant anything to me in this world.

And he meant it. The only other person who meant the whole world to Jihoon was on another planet.

----------------------------------------------

The first few months, after reality came down on him, were hard. Everything felt broken. His hands couldn’t type, his mind wouldn’t think, his legs didn’t want to take another step, and his heart didn’t feel any emotions. Even if Jihoon was alive, he wasn’t really living.

There was no one to make sure he was feeding himself, no one to lecture his bad habits of lying in bed day in and day out. Jihoon couldn’t even remember the last time he took a shower. Staring at his useless hands, Jihoon knew he didn’t care enough to do anything. What was the point of living when his reason for living was gone.

Seungcheol had stopped writing to him, barely trying with any kind of greeting.

Jihoon was too heartbroken to even try, it was hopeless in the end anyways.

----------------------------------------------

His mother’s caretaker suddenly called him one day out of the blue. Jihoon knew the caretaker wouldn’t have bothered him unless it was necessary, so he picked up. The moment he heard it was an emergency, Jihoon dropped everything. Not that he had much going on at the moment anyway. He rushed to her without any further thoughts.

Jihoon knew he should have never left his own mother, but she had found someone else to love, someone who lost their soulmate at an early age too. Even then, Jihoon should have persisted to stay. Who would have thought she was going to lose another soulmate, this time to cancer.

Getting to her in time, Jihoon sat by her bedside for the rest of his stay. Not daring to sleep, as every moment was now precious. Jihoon wanted to spend the remainder of their time together, remembering her for all her goodness.

When she had awoken to find Jihoon by her side, her smile woke something in Jihoon. He felt alive again. They took all the time they needed to whisper their fond memories to each other. Then the two became serious, and she told Jihoon she had something important to tell him.

“Lee Sungmin,” she said, “You have to find him. He can help you find your soulmate.”

----------------------------------------------

His mother’s words confused Jihoon to no end. What was he to do with the information? Did he really want to go and find this Lee Sungmin? Would this man help him find someone who lived on a completely different world? Even if his mother wanted him to trust this man, Jihoon was cautious of what could happen.

Plus, Jihoon wasn’t sure he was in the right state of mind to be making any decisions. He had lost Seungcheol and now he had lost his mother too. If he was to do anything, Jihoon feared something could go terribly wrong.

Maybe it was all just an excuse though. In all honesty, Jihoon felt comfortable enough to lay in bed and not have to move a finger all day. Who knows what kind of troubles he would have to put himself through to find this Lee Sungmin. And even if Jihoon did find the man, it didn’t guarantee him a way to Seungcheol.

Jihoon wasn’t ready for another round of disappointment. Having his mother pass away in his arms already destroyed him.   

----------------------------------------------

Light was shining brightly in his eyes one morning, and Jihoon’s chest wouldn’t stop hurting. He was in so much pain. Curling up, Jihoon tried to hold himself together. Even with an invisible hand squeezing the life out of his heart, Jihoon didn’t want to succumb to taking his own life.

Thinking of how long and lonely it was bound to be made unwanted tears trinkle out of his already irritated eyes. Jihoon was fed up with all the emotions he was dealing with, he didn’t bother to wipe away the fresh tears.

Turning over in bed, Jihoon fell back to sleep.

When Jihoon wakes up later that day, it’s already dark out. He wanted to deny the pain he was feeling on his left arm, but he couldn’t. He hadn’t felt it in a long time, and the unexpectedness was enough to shock him. With much confusion, Jihoon turns on his bedside lamp. Bringing his arm in front of him, he wondered if it would happen again or if he was just dreaming it.

But it was most definitely not a dream. The pain he once learnt to endure had come back. After so long of not having it happen daily, Jihoon wondered how he had dealt with it in the past. Pushing those thoughts aside, Jihoon’s heart raced as he watched words appear on his arms.

Ji.

Messy handwriting was what he was receiving. Jihoon wanted to be mad at the obviously drunk Seungcheol, yet he knew he had no right to say anything at this point. It didn’t stop Jihoon, though, from having tears flow freely after seeing those messy letters appear on his arm.

Jihoonie.

Jihoon almost wanted to write back. Even if it was to swear at Seungcheol for getting himself so drunk. In the end he knew it would have been pointless. Who was he to care so much for Seungcheol, especially when he couldn’t even be there for him in person.

In deep frustration, Jihoon angrily raked his hands through his hair.

----------------------------------------------

For an unknown countless numbers of nights, Jihoon cries himself to sleep. His unending pattern of life blurred together.

Day after day, week after week, eventually Jihoon becomes sick of it all. Despite how dramatic his life had changed when Seungcheol’s words appeared, he still had a life before it all.

And after a long slumber, Jihoon knew he had to do something about his situation. He couldn’t continue living the way he had been.

On a cold morning, at the beginning of winter, Jihoon woke up and he knew things were going to change. He started with the piles of trash everywhere. With a new dedication, his entropy way of life was going to end. It had to, Jihoon was tired of looking at the same scene of mess every day.

When Jihoon was done emptying his place of trash, he wiped everything down in hopes of getting rid of all the dust building up. Even after these small chores, his environment was already looking livable again.

Looking at his piled up sink, Jihoon knew it couldn’t be helped. He had to it in and just do it. Sighing, he stepped up to the counter and started soaping up the untouched sponge. While cleaning, Jihoon started piling up more trash he was making and finding. At the sight of it all, Jihoon wanted to cry at how clean it was but also for how much he still had to do.

After a second round of taking out full bags of trash, Jihoon decided he had to take a shower. He was full of sweat and he was sure he smelt of it too.

In the shower, all alone with his thoughts, Jihoon couldn’t believe what he had achieved in one day. A small smile grew on his lips, glad to know he was still capable of taking care of himself without help. When all the grime washed away, Jihoon finally felt like a human being.

----------------------------------------------

Despite coming back from his slump, Jihoon was not ready to start writing again. While thinking of his past work, and any new ideas, all he could think of was Seungcheol.

To give himself a break, Jihoon decided to immerse himself in his other favorite hobby. He was going to inhale every book possible under the sun. Thus began his infatuation of many trips to the library. Jihoon was seen between rows of books at least twice a week. When Jihoon had found any and all the books that had stirred anything in him, he would go back home with armloads and settle in.

Nothing else mattered to Jihoon other than to live long enough to finish his new life goal. Which was to read all the books in the world.

----------------------------------------------

Late into the night, Jihoon was engrossed with one of his many novels. He may have been tired, but his curiosity of what was going to happen next was winning over the need to sleep.

While he read, it couldn’t be helped, Jihoon thought of ideas to write. Reading made Jihoon anticipate any future work he would be doing. He wasn’t ready just yet, but when he was he knew he would be typing away with a passion.

Jihoon was happily reading when it happened. His already racing heart pulsed irregularly, and continued to thump against his chest. The blood drained from his face as this was all too familiar.

A pain grew on his arm, disturbing his peaceful night of reading. Closing his eyes to endure the pain, Jihoon groaned in frustration. After all that had happened, this was not something Jihoon had been expecting.

Aren’t you at all curious?

Jihoon scrunched his face up in frustration. How- how dare Choi Seungcheol do this to him after all this time? There was no way Jihoon was going to allow himself to write anything back. Seungcheol had made it very clear he didn’t want to keep talking. So why should Jihoon entertain the boy from another world.

I know this is all pointless, but everything that has happened seemed like a dream. No matter what I do, I can’t go a day without having to know if you’re real or not. Or if I’m driving myself crazy with a hallucination.

Reading Seungcheol’s words brought back the pain Jihoon had pushed away. He wished it was just that, a hallucination. Jihoon would have rather lived knowing Seungcheol was not real, then to know this was all real and not even be able to meet him.

----------------------------------------------

One night, after a long day of reading, a name popped up into Jihoon’s mind.

Lee Sungmin.

Once the idea was there, Jihoon couldn’t stop thinking about it.

And to be honest, hearing from Seungcheol again made Jihoon stuck in daydreams of what could have been. He never allowed himself to before, knowing how unsafe it would have been. Reading Seungcheol’s words though, Jihoon wanted to know what it was like to have Seungcheol in front of him. Even in daydreams Jihoon knew it would have been amazing.

Then he remembered the name his mother told him of. Lee Sungmin.

Knowing he wouldn’t be getting any more sleep that night, Jihoon made a pot of coffee and started his research. Sitting in front of his laptop, all the tricks he had learnt long ago came back to him.

Just searching the name Lee Sungmin brought up nothing. Coming up with no results Jihoon realized he was going to have to get creative. He added related words that could possibly help further his research.

----------------------------------------------

This went on for days and days. Jihoon went deeper and deeper into the internet world, sometimes finding himself on a thread of the dark web. There were times when Jihoon felt like he was getting somewhere, only to have the page he was on to crash and never show up on his history list.

The whole prospects of it all frustrated Jihoon to no end. To almost have something and only to have it disappear in front of him again and again. Everything Jihoon was going through in the recent days irritated him, making him almost want to throw away all he had been working on.

A few times Jihoon did decide to throw in the towel and forget it all, then the thoughts of Seungcheol drifted in and Jihoon knew he couldn’t do it. He marched back to his laptop, even if he felt like sulking.

Deeply sighing, he knew he was at least going to try everything he had before he surrendered. The Jihoon he was changing to be didn’t give up.

----------------------------------------------

Jihoon was thankful for the changes happening in him. Because he finally caught a break. He found something. A thread that didn’t disappear after a second of clicking on it, and it seemed to have actual people writing out about their own experiences.

Too scared to lose the page, Jihoon brought his laptop around with him wherever he went. And wherever he went, he read the thread thoroughly, not wanting to miss any information. The endless amount of stories shocked him. Stories, not so strange anymore, were similar to his.

Deep into a story of where the writer was actually part of child trafficking, Jihoon found the name Lee Sungmin. Apparently Lee Sungmin helped the writer return to their soulmate on their original world. So how was this story floating around here?

Goosebumps constantly rose on Jihoon’s body as he continued to read story to story. And as he got deeper and deeper, more mentions of Lee Sungmin came up.

The further Jihoon read, though, he felt like he wasn’t going to get anywhere. Nothing was leading him to ways of finding Lee Sungmin.

Jihoon stretched his back, rolled his shoulders, and shook out his fingers. He was on the 37th page, having read from the very beginning, and he was determined to finish reading this page before he made another pot of coffee.

Not finding anything on the current page he was on, Jihoon stood up with his laptop and walked over to his small kitchen. Getting the pot going, Jihoon clicked on the next page. Scrolling down as he continued to read, Jihoon waited as the coffee brewed. A small sigh escaped as he found nothing and clicked on the next page.

The coffee maker beeped and Jihoon poured himself a cup. Going back to his desk with laptop and a cup of coffee, Jihoon read through another page. This is when he notices something different from all the other pages he had been reading through. His heart jumped, racing now from anticipation of what was going on.

There was a hidden message.

“Congratulations, the person you have been looking for is making contact with you. If you want to find me and talk, come to the National Library of Korea. I’ll be there every day till 5pm, and I’ll be leaving this coming up Friday. If we don’t get the chance to meet, we won’t get the chance ever again. I’ll be wearing sapphire blue sneakers. I look forward to meeting you.”

Jihoon couldn’t believe it. He had actually found something. His persistence had paid off. The first thing he wanted to do was to tell Seungcheol. Looking around for a pen, Jihoon picked up the first one he came across.

But the moment he brought it down on his own arm, Jihoon stopped himself.

Even if he had found a way to see this Lee Sungmin, nothing really was for sure. He could be meeting anybody who claimed themselves to be who he was looking for. Before Jihoon could even think of telling Seungcheol, he had to make sure.

Wanting to read over the message again, Jihoon looks at his laptop, but the message wasn’t there anymore. The whole page was wiped clean. In deep confusion, Jihoon checked his history list, knowing full well nothing was going to show up.

Sighing, Jihoon wondered what he was going to do. It was already Thursday, if he didn’t show up tomorrow his only chance would be gone. His moment of happiness was only short lived as the hardest part of this doing all this was coming up. Meeting Lee Sungmin in real life.

Laying in bed that night, Jihoon tried his hardest to sleep. He had already set up the countless alarms he would need to wake up in the morning, but his mind wouldn’t let him sleep. He tossed and turned, his mind jumping from Lee Sungmin to Choi Seungcheol.

----------------------------------------------

The next day had Jihoon standing in front of the National Library of Korea. A moment of dread filled him up. The building was huge. A small frustrated pout formed on his lips as he wondered how was he to find one man. And who knows if there was only one person who was wearing blue shoes at the moment.

Instead of pulling out all of his hair in frustration, Jihoon stomped his feet instead. Once he felt some tension leave his body, he ventured into the enormous building. At least he showed up during opening hours to give himself time.

Wasting none of that time, Jihoon started to walk around looking down at people’s shoes. It didn’t take long before he started to get weird looks from the people around him. Jihoon couldn’t care less honestly, he was on a mission. Throwing away all embarrassment, Jihoon continued on his search.

After hours of walking around, Jihoon had to stop. His stomach was rumbling and starting to ache for food. Even with the different array of options, Jihoon only cared for simplicity. He needed quick food, something he didn’t have to wait for. He still had a full day of searching and he didn’t want to waste the whole day eating.

Since it was a library, with many interesting delicate books, Jihoon knew he couldn’t and wouldn’t bring food with him on his journey. He had too much respect for the books. There were already moments, throughout the day, when Jihoon wished he had stopped by this library more often. But when he had one closer to him, he rather make the short journey than to have to deal with being around people.

Sitting down with his food, Jihoon started to eat. Despite wanting to scarf down the food and continue his search, he knew he would only acquire a stomachache. So he told himself to take his time, even if it was ten minutes.

Jihoon was just about with his food done when someone joined him at his table. Looking up from his plate, Jihoon stares into the eyes of a man a few years older than him smiling back at him.

“Who - who are you?” Jihoon asked.

The man still continued to smile, enjoying himself, “Look down at my shoes.”

The comment made Jihoon’s heartbeat fasten. Was this man who he thought he was? The Lee Sungmin he was looking for. Putting down his chopsticks, Jihoon leaned over to look under the table. Sapphire blue sneakers tapped along to the music playing overhead.

Jihoon came back up to look at the man sitting down across from him, “Lee Sungmin?”

Nodding, with a wide smile, Lee Sungmin introduced himself, “The one, the only, Lee Sungmin. You can call me Sungmin. You’ve been looking for me, haven’t you?”

With his own nod, Jihoon said, “I have. How did you know it was me?”

“I have my ways,” Sungmin said, smirking, “What is your name by the way.”

“Ahh,” Jihoon said, gasping at how forgetful he had been, “I’m Lee Jihoon.”

“It’s good to meet you, Lee Jihoon,” Sungmin said, still smiling, “There is only one reason why anyone, anywhere, would try to find me. You need to find a way into another world.”

Jihoon’s heart started pulsing faster. This was starting to be really real. This was happening. “My-my mother told me of your name. And yes, I do need to travel to another world.”

Sungmin nodded in understanding, “If you’re done eating, let’s go find another spot to talk.”

“I’m done,” Jihoon said, knowing he wouldn’t be able to eat anymore anyways. Picking up his plate, he went to return it. Sungmin was waiting for him at the door when he turned around.

Once Jihoon joins him, he had to reask, “Seriously though, how did you know it was me?”

Sungmin chuckled, “Your laptop, like all other laptops, has a camera on it. I hacked into it and saw you.”

This didn’t make Jihoon feel comforted. The moment he got home he was going to stick something over the little camera. Since there was nothing he could do about it now, Jihoon follows Sungmin as he leads them away from the food court. While walking, Sungmin has a lot to tell Jihoon.

“I’ve been here for a whole week already,” Sungmin said, “and you were taking forever reading through all the stories. I wondered if I should have changed the date. I was even wondering if you would have ever gotten to my hidden message. But then I was finally notified last night of it. You have no idea how excited that made me. I love these trips, and I love hearing the stories of them even more.”

None of this was really making sense to Jihoon, but he went along with it, “You want to hear my story?”

“Of course,” Sungmin grinned, “Of all the years I’ve been doing this, it’s the stories that keep me going. I love reuniting family, friends, and loved ones. Cause, to be honest, I was in the same situation.”

“You?” Jihoon couldn’t help but ask.

“Yup,” Sungmin said, “Me, I was separated from my soulmate.”

Their conversation was interrupted when Sungmin goes up to a counter, greets the service desk employee, and asks for a quiet study room.

Once Sungmin signs papers, gets a key, he starts leading them away again.

Everything happening still made Jihoon hesitant, but Sungmin knew so much about his situation and was telling him so many convincing facts about what he was dealing with. He at least wanted to hear him out. And if the situation went downhill Jihoon knew they were in a public building where someone had to hear him screaming his head off.

Getting to their study room, they closed the door and settled in for a long talk.

Sungmin started, not wanting to lose any moment they had, “Okay, let’s start from the beginning. I was streaming long, somewhere in space, thinking of going home, when I get a notification. When someone is looking for me, searching my name, I get notified. So of course, before I let you get to any information, I had to watch what you were doing. It’s the reason why your laptop had so many funny cliches and why your history cleared so many times.”

“You were stalking me?” Jihoon asked, still in shock.

Sungmin shrugged, “You were kind of stalking me first. Plus, I had to see what your motives were. When I saw your related words to my name, I figured you had a problem I could help you with. After taking some precautions, and talking to some friends, I knew you needed help.”

“Why are you telling me all this?” Jihoon wondered. “Why are you so willing to help?”

“I told you before,” Sungmin tells him, “My soulmate was taken away from her family when she was younger. She was about to be sold when she escaped and was thankfully taken in by a good family. They all knew she was from a different world, but they had no idea how to help her go back.”

“I remember the day we started writing. She told me her name, Kim Saeun. I kept repeating it to myself even after we stopped writing to each other. It was only soon afterwards when we realized something was wrong. She had hoped she would get a soulmate on the world she had been taken to, but it didn’t work out like that.”

“The both of us started searching for ways to find each other. Back then it was a lot harder, the technology wasn’t as good as it is now. It took forever, but I found some people who did what I do now. They helped me track my soulmate and helped us get together. Ever since then, I knew I had to do something to help those who were in the same position. My wife had the same thoughts. We’ve been doing this ever since.”

Jihoon couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Do you tell this to everyone who needs your help?”

Smiling, Sungmin nods, “If it helps them believe me. I want you to understand why I am so willing to help. There has to be some kind of trust between us for this to work out. Because I know it may seem crazy, but I’m offering you a free ride to help you find the one you are looking for. I don’t offer help to anyone unless I think it’s sincere. I’ve been through your pain. If I can do anything to make things better than I’ll do it.”

One minute Sungmin is smiling and the next he is frowning, “Jihoon, are you okay? You’re crying.”

Rushing to cover his face, Jihoon couldn’t stop himself from letting it all go. He had been insecure of himself ever since he lost everything in his life. The overwhelming emotions filling him up, made the tears unstoppable.

Being in the position he was in at the moment was so unexpected. Nothing had been going right for a long time. To finally achieve something, after chasing it with his whole heart, made a rush of mixed emotions swallow him whole.

Jihoon trembled with sadness and relief. His mother had left him this one last gift. He should have taken her words more seriously and looked for Sungmin faster.

Sungmin waited as Jihoon calmed himself. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to overwhelm you and make you cry.”

“No,” Jihoon said, shaking his head, “It’s fine. You did nothing wrong. I’ve been having a lot to think about and I’m just happy something is going right in my life.”

Nodding, Sungmin listened on with curiosity, “If you don’t mind, I would like to hear what happened.”

Sniffling, Jihoon wiped away his tears. Once he was able to talk without crying, he tells his story. “My soulmate. He’s on a different world. We didn’t realize there was anything wrong till we wanted to meet up. That’s when I talked to my mother and she told me she had ran away from my father. With good reason too, since he had been abusing her. She saved us by bringing us here. But because of that, I lost my soulmate.”

Sungmin shook his head slightly. “You didn’t lose your soulmate. You’re just temporarily apart. We’re going to find him and get you guys together.”

----------------------------------------------

Jihoon was sent home to rest. There wasn’t much else for him to do but to wait.

Sungmin had told him there was a lot of work he had to do, mostly dealing with finding Seungcheol. When he figured that out, he would contact Jihoon again and plan their departure.

----------------------------------------------

So the wait began.

Jihoon wanted to get back into reading right away, but it was hard and it took forever to finish one book. His mind was elsewhere. Daydreaming of what could have been and what was about to happen.

Even with no knowledge of how long the search would go for, Jihoon decided to trust Sungmin. After what felt like a lifetime the dread that had filled Jihoon everyday finally left him. It was all thanks to meeting Lee Sungmin. There was a spark of hope in Jihoon, one that he hadn’t felt in forever.

The last time he felt anything like hope, Jihoon wanted to meet Seungcheol. He was willing to forgo all his uncertainties and just run to his soulmate. Right now, the hope was back. There was nothing more Jihoon wanted than to meet Seungcheol and start their lives together.

----------------------------------------------

A few days turned into weeks.

Jihoon didn’t want to lose hope, but there had yet to be any words from Sungmin.

Sighing, Jihoon browsed through all the library books he had checked out that week. They were all he really had at the moment. Knowing he wouldn’t be on this world any longer than he needed to be, Jihoon had donated a lot of his things. The only things he did keep in his possession was a backpack filled with necessities, a change of clothes, and his laptop. Nothing else mattered.

When Jihoon did decide on a book to read, he laid down on the floor with his backpack tucked under his head as a pillow. He settled in for a long day of reading. Just like how he spent every day now.

It didn’t take long for Jihoon to fall asleep. He was particularly tired these days. His mind was swimming with possibilities that maybe his encounter with Lee Sungmin was all in his head. With everything that had been happening in his life, he wouldn’t have been surprised. He was always on a swing, going back and forth from feeling in control to feeling hugely disturbed by everything.

A searing pain wakes Jihoon up. Bringing his arm up, Jihoon realizes it’s too dark to see what is being done to his arm. He turns his arm around and looks at his watch instead. Close to midnight and he was receiving a message. The pain went away and Jihoon knows whatever message he had just gotten was already gone.

Getting up to turn on the light, Jihoon wondered if Seungcheol would try again. He goes to sit by his backpack incase he needs a pen. Even if he felt like he may need a pen, thinking of writing back worried him. Did he want to respond to what Seungcheol had to say?

Jihoon sighed, and soon after the pain returned. After having no contact with anyone in a long time, Jihoon wondered what his soulmate had to say to him.

Jihoon, I need to know you’re reading this before I say what I need to say. Are you there?

Despite the seriousness of the situation they were in, Jihoon couldn’t help but chuckle a little. Where else would Jihoon be without his arm around.

Of course Jihoon knew he had to respond, but his rapidly beating heart made his hand shaky. It felt like an eternity since the last time he did this.

I’m here.

Good, cause the weirdest thing happened today. A lady came up to me today and asked if I knew a Lee Jihoon.

For a moment Jihoon forgot how to breath, his heart was caught in his throat. This could have meant anything. What was he supposed to write back to make sure it was actually Sungmin who contacted him. He didn’t have to think long, as new words from Seungcheol was coming in.

She said her name was Kim Saeun?? No one has ever asked about you here. Or even knew of your name. Why is someone asking about you Jihoon? What is going on?

His heart was beating fast and loud, he could actually hear it and feel it. Sungmin’s wife. She found Seungcheol. Before he knew it, Jihoon was choking back tears. He had to write back, to make sure Seungcheol knew what was going on.

I didn’t want to tell you and give you false hope if it didn’t work out. My mother gave me a name on the day she passed. A man named Lee Sungmin and his wife Kim Saeun are helping me get to you.

Jihoon.

Hoonie.

Ji.

Are you serious?

Jihoon had never felt so light hearted seeing all the nicknames Seungcheol had for him.

I am serious.

----------------------------------------------

The next morning Jihoon woke up with a knock at his door. No one ever knocked at his door.

Quickly wiping away the sleep from his eyes, Jihoon walked over to his front door. Normally Jihoon never opened the door for anyone, but whoever was knocking now wouldn’t stop and leave. It had to be important.

After confirming his side of the story, Seungcheol had stopped all contact. There was much for the both of them to think about. Jihoon only hoped Seungcheol was okay with what he was doing.

Pushing his thoughts of Seungcheol away, Jihoon unlocked his door and opened it. Looking up to the person standing in front of him, Jihoon couldn’t believe it. It had been a month since they last spoke. Seeing this person now, Jihoon could finally feel glad the last few months weren’t a dream.

“Lee Jihoon!” Sungmin said in greeting, smiling widely.

Jihoon gave him a small smile in return, “Finally. Lee Sungmin.”

“I would love to come in and see your empty apartment, but we have bigger things to deal with. I know I was supposed to contact you with departure plans, but we’re going to have to speed things up a bit. Are you ready to change your life?”

Without saying anything, Jihoon goes to grab his backpack and walks back.

“That’s all your taking?” Sungmin asked.

“This is all I need,” Jihoon confirmed, “I’m going to meet my soulmate, what else could I care about.”

Sungmin nods, turning around to leave the place.

Jihoon sighs, taking one last look at the place he called home, and follows Sungmin out.

----------------------------------------------

Jihoon was stuck in wonder of how Sungmin was supposed to get them to a different world when Sungmin was driving them in a car. But he kept those thoughts to himself. He still wanted to trust Sungmin, especially after last night.

The drive had been a few hours in and they were starting to be surrounded by scenery of forests. Jihoon couldn’t keep in his curiosity any longer.

“Your wife,” Jihoon got out.

Sungmin glanced at him and smiled, “Saeun found your soulmate. Yes. Did he mention something to you?”

Jihoon nodded as he said, “He did.”

After another moment of silent driving, Jihoon asked, “Where are we going?”

“A friend I have here on this world is taking care of my spaceship. He lives in a secluded place, which is why we’re taking forever to get there.”

----------------------------------------------

“You’re leaving already?” Sungmin’s friend asked, following them to the hidden spaceship.

Still walking, Sungmin said, “Of course I have to. I have to send Jihoon to his soulmate. You know how these things are.”

“I do know,” his friend said back, “but everyone misses you. You haven’t even seen them yet. Zhoumi and Henry were talking about flying back in from China to see you.”

Sungmin smiles at the mention of his friends, “Next time when we’re back in town. When we have leisure time. I promise.”

His friend scoffs, “When do you guys ever have leisure time?”

“Leeteuk,” Sungmin starts, “I know you’re as passionate about this as I am. Jihoon, here, has never met his soulmate. I want them to be together, and I know you know this is the right thing to do too. Now stop being a puppy and go worry about our other friends.”

Leeteuk huffed out in annoyance, “You and Sauen better be back soon. Otherwise I’m going to send Eunhyuk and Donghae after you guys. And Jihoon, I hope you have an amazing life with your soulmate. I’m sorry about everything that has happened to you. My friend, Sungmin, will help you get to your soulmate safely. I promise.”

Jihoon nodded, blinking before he could speak, “Thank you.”

“I’ll see you soon,” Sungmin said, waving to his friend who finally stopped following them.

Throughout the last few minutes, Jihoon had been quietly following Sungmin, unsure of what to say. What could he say when he was the outsider to their friendship? All he could think about was how his racing heart was filled with warmth at the thought of all these people trying to help him and people with similar stories.

“Come on, Jihoon. Let’s go meet your soulmate,” Sungmin said, smiling to him, “Mines is also waiting there.”

----------------------------------------------

“Ahhh, sorry it took me so long to get back to you,” Sungmin said once they were in front of his spaceship.

Jihoon didn’t know what to expect, but there it was, hidden behind some thick trees. Sungmin had keys for it, clicking a button to make a door come down as a ladder.

Sungmin continues, as he starts up the spaceship, “You wouldn’t believe it, but there are actual people out there who don’t like what I do. They do illegal bounty hunting. We had to stay off the grid for a while.”

“What you do isn’t safe, yet you still do it?” Jihoon asks, settling down in a seat Sungmin showed him to.

Sungmin grinned, “Of course. I’ve been telling you. This is something I’m passionate about. Despite the risks, we’re willing to take them on to help you find your soulmate.”

Jihoon was in awe, “Thank you.”

----------------------------------------------

The travel was to take three days. Thankfully Sungmin had a small personal library on his ship and allowed Jihoon to read from it. Even with the looming events to happen in a few days, Jihoon greedily took books from shelves to read through. This was a rare chance to see books from other worlds and Jihoon wasn’t going to lose that chance.

While reading, Jihoon lost all track of time, which he was fine with. He was sure Sungmin would tell him when they’ve reached the place.

As the day came closer, it was hard to keep reading. Jihoon hoped reading would calm his nerves, but it didn’t. He was going to see his soulmate, his Choi Seungcheol. How could he keep calm?

On the day they were to reach Seungcheol’s world, Jihoon couldn’t even read words. He barely acknowledged anything in front of him. He was so nervous, Sungmin had to calm him down a few times. And because of the nerves, Sungmin also had to talk Jihoon through eating some food. After all these years, after all these months, he was going to meet his soulmate.

Calming himself down enough, Jihoon thought of their first writings to each other, all the days they spent staying up to write back and forth, how he fell in love with Seungcheol. Nothing felt more right than to be with Seungcheol for the rest of his life.

----------------------------------------------

“Were here,” Sungmin said, smiling widely, “Saeun gave me the address for the place we’re meeting up. Are you ready to go meet your soulmate?”

Jihoon was curled up in his seat, and he couldn’t talk as he was stunned speechless.

Sungmin kneeled by him. “The nervousness is natural. You’ve been writing with this guy for over six years, and after everything you guys have been through, it’s okay. Saeun has been keeping in contact with your soulmate too, to get him to meet up with you, and she says he’s just as nervous. But he’s there, waiting for you.”

Hearing Sungmin’s calming and reassuring words, Jihoon’s heart skipped. Giving a small nod, Jihoon stood up and walked out of the spaceship with Sungmin.

As he walked down the stairs, Jihoon remembered he wasn’t on the same world he was on before. The curiosity of it got the better of him and he started to look around with eagerness. But there wasn’t much to be excited about, it looked like the world he came from.

Sungmin closes up his spaceship and leads them away from it. “It looks like the same doesn’t it? I sent out word earlier. My friend who lives here is lending me a car. Let’s go.”

----------------------------------------------

Jihoon looks at the scenery around him as Sungmin drives them to the location. He was hoping it would be a good distraction, but it wasn’t. His heart was thumping loudly as a cold sweat broke out all over his body. Jihoon felt like he could start crying at any given moment.

He was thankful Sungmin wasn’t trying to make him talk. Jihoon couldn’t even think properly at the moment.

Soon the car comes to a stop and Sungmin parks the car in front of what looks like a restaurant.

“We’re here,” Sungmin said, getting out of the car.

Jihoon follows the motion and gets out from his side.

His stomach was in a tangle, his heart wanted to jump out, and his whole body was feeling clammy.

Sungmin went in first.

While Jihoon lingered outside, trying to calm himself down. He was the one who wanted this, he wanted to meet Seungcheol badly, but he was still over worried with doubt. What if...

Jihoon shook his head. No. This is what they both wanted. He knew he loved Seungcheol. And it might not have been obvious in the last few months, but he knew Seungcheol loved him too.

Taking in a deep breath and letting it out, Jihoon walked into the restaurant.

----------------------------------------------

There was only one person sitting in the whole place. Jihoon didn’t even care to think of where everyone else was. He only had eyes for the one person.

Seeing him, Jihoon knew, his soulmate.

“Are you... Choi Seungcheol?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

a reader once told me there is a reason for everything that i write. 

i hope everyone is enjoying the holidays!! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!