Soon you'll be gone, and I'll stay. 

They say fate leads life according to it's order and no one can escape that future it held for you. But the future is dictated by time, and fate is not time and it can never be. I may be the only one to believe this, but tricking destiny is possible, because time is an illusion. 

The whispers of the wind brought me back to where I am, a playground in the familiar neighborhood, drowned by the heavy clouds and pale city lights. Cold hands on my pocket, standing with unsteady feet, waiting with anxious eyes and an anguished heart. There are so many things needed to be said, so many reasons why and why not. This is the night where I tell her all of it, the night where I lay down all the cards and be okay with losing everything I have. 

I hear faint footsteps blending with the quiet night. Soft. Controlled. Careful. Very much like her. It took a lot of effort to turn back, because I have to face her and I have to smile. "Hey." I say. She was just standing there, in her baggy clothes and favorite red slippers, her face bare, yet she is still so beautiful. "You brought Ari."

"I needed a reason to get out. "she said, looking at the puppy, It went to me when she removed it's leash. 

I stooped down so I can pet her. Been a long time baby. "She's in your dorm now? " I asked. 

She nodded, sitting on the swings that was beside me. "Just for a while. My parents went on a vacation."

"Really? So the Jeju trip finally happened. " I asked. I hear her laugh softly. "How are they? "

"They're okay. Dad's still into football. Mom's suddenly doing yoga and my brother thinks about marriage. " I stopped petting Ari "Too soon, right? " she chuckled. 

I smiled. Not only because she knew exactly what I was thinking, but also because I missed our times when we're simply like this, casually talking about the most random things. I carried the puppy and sat on the swings that was next to her, laying the dog on my lap. 

"How's Hanbyul? " she asked. 

"She misses you. " I look at her. "She looks for you first when I go home. I'm a bit hurt. She says I'm not good at shopping. "

"She's just growing up. It's natural to want to be with other girls at her age. " she laughed. "She'll depend on you less and find you more annoying each day. "

"What the hell." I mouthed. "I won't let that happen. "

She looked at me. "It will. I've been there. It doesn't mean she'll love you less though, don't worry. " 

I shake my head a little. "Time has really passed. She's this little before. " I said, holding the puppy. 

She smiled again. "I know. "

It was quiet for a while. Neither of us talked, there were only faint buzzes of the neighbors and the occasional creaks of the swings, until she asked. "Why did you want to meet me? "

My heart started to beat fast. Reality has come. I smiled bitterly, because I thought there was forever, but look at us, here at the end. I looked at her once again, she seems thinner and the shadow under her eyes are even more noticeable now, her hair changed color but her eyes still look the same, it's the same pair of eyes that comforts me, tells me that I can do anything, eyes that understands the meaning behind my words, eyes that I wish to see every morning when I wake up. Eyes that I know has cried for me and because of me. "June told me about that night. "

She looked at the ground, watching her feet drawing in the dust. "What did he say? "

"That I was with you. " I tell her. 

She looked at me then. "What do you remember?"

"I was drunk and I felt like there's more alcohol to my body than is blood. My thoughts were a blur and I know the slur in my words, but I remember what I said. " I paused, taking myself back to that night. "And I remember you. "

She smiled and played with the swings again. "You were babbling about a lot of things. And you were extra clingy. "

I chuckled, a bit embarrassed. I can't believe I thou