The 17 Year Old Me.

"Is he really the person who was once me?"

Darkness permeated the atmosphere; broken fragments of glasses were wandering off and crumpled papers almost filled the entire room. An empty bottle rolled down underneath the bed; the pills inside it were gone in a few seconds after being consumed by him. Though his body was resting still, his soul was yet wailing for hope. His life was slowly leaving him little by little. His eyes weakly opened after being drowned by tears, damping his skin. "I want to end my life," he whispered under his breath as he was wrapped with melancholy and pain for such a long time. 

Soon after, he was awakened by the whistling winds, sending shivers on his bare skin. The place was unfamiliar to him, it was a long tunnel with the darkness swallowing the light. He ran as fast as he could while reaching his hands to the exit and when he got out, loud chatters greeted his ears, giving his a nostalgic feelings in the core of his being.  And from there, someone had bumped on him. "Who are you?"

His eyes could not believe the person in front of him; it was him, nine years ago. He met his other self in the past, the 17 year old him. Behind him were his friends; Yunho, Changmin, Junsu and Yoochun. His mouth dropped, quivered in confusion and then, his gaze met up to him. "No, this is not reality," he mumbled softly as he shook his head, telling himself that it was only a dream.

His other self held his hands tightly, while giving him a smile. His friends grinned and laughed together. Their laughter brought tears on his eyes. A hot liquid suddenly came rushing on his cheeks to the point that he could not control it anymore. His body dropped on the ground as he covered his face with his hands. A group of innocent eyes looked at him with sympathy.

 It was not too long ago since him, Junsu, and Yoochun filed a lawsuit against SM Entertainment, thus leaving two members behind and creating JYJ, their new group. This heartbreaking event slowly tore their long-time friendship and hate and pride began to conquer both sides' hearts. How did I go back to the past?

Unexpectedly, these five people in his past pulled him into an embrace, giving him the warmth that he was longing for; he cried even more not with sadness. "Ahjusshi, you should come with us and watch our performance! It can cheer you up," Yunho suggested and the others nodded in agreement. 

The boys dragged him to the rehearsing room. Jae Joong stepped inside and roamed around while thinking of the memories that he had there with his friends. In this old room, they started on achieving their dreams and this was where they built their friendship with each other. A heavy sigh escaped from his mouth. 

"Ahjusshi, we are going to perform our debut song, 'Hug' and I hope that you'll enjoy it," the youngest said and they started owning the dance floor. Jae Joong watched them in the corner of the room, observing how he changed though the past years. He looked at a nearby mirror and it reflected his stressed face. Dark circles formed under his eyes and his weight seemed to drop; he gulped hard, clearing his throat. Is he really the person who was once me?

His self nine years ago was the complete opposite of him. The music stopped and Yunho calmly pointed out the mistakes of the members in the performance. "Jae Joong, you need to practice your vocals," he told him as he put his arms around his shoulders. His other self just smiled and the other members laughed and promised that they would do better next time.  Again, the adult Jae Joong stared at the mirror. Why did that smile faded away as years passed by? He was a person, full of dreams back then by as time flew, everything changed. What happened to me?

The clock struck at twelve and he knew that it was now time to go back to the present time. He called his other self and smiled at him.

"Jae Joong, in your life, you can experience many challenges and there would be times that it feels like giving up. But, always do your best and keep trying. Remember to smile and always keep the faith in your heart. You are not alone. Now, go and cherish every moments that you have with them," he said, making the young Jae Joong, confused. He showed him his precious smile again and went back to his friends. 

His eyes stared at his old self. Then, he noticed that his figure was slowly fading. "Just keep on smiling, the 17 year old me," he whispered softly, almost inaudible. Tears fell on his face. 

In the present time, he regained consciousness in the hospital; only finding four faces, looking at him. "Hyung, why did you try to kill yourself? We are glad that you are still here," he told him. Yunho and Changmin also rushed there after hearing the news of his suicide attempt despite the threat of the company. 

Yunho sat beside him. "Jae, remember that we are still here for you. We are friends and no one can break Dong Bang Shin Ki apart," he pursued his lips but he stopped talking for a while. The other members walked towards him and together, they hugged him tightly like what we used to do before. "We are still brothers," Changmin suddenly blurted out. After that dramatic scene, he heard the nostalgic laughter like before. 

At that time, five hearts reunited as one again. "Always keep the faith," they exclaimed together.

THE END.