The night is getting deeper but Dara and Hyukjae were still fully awake while seating in silence beneath the cold sand of the empty beach; away from the city. After their fun moments at the amusement park, they head over the coastline of Guryongpo. It was already 2:00 am and the serenity of the surroundings is visible. The small waves of the sea are gently crashing the seashore, making a piece of music that was soothing to their ears. The moon and the stars above were shining brightly beyond the horizon. And the cold breeze of the wind is bringing shivers to Dara’s spine.

Hyukjae, noticing that Dara is trembling from the coldness of the wind, took off his jacket and silently put it over her small body. She flinched in surprise. But the moment she saw the tranquility of his eyes, a smile had bloomed on her lips under the dim lights of the moon.

Seeing the smile of her made him feel that he swallowed a herd of butterflies and it was flying joyfully inside his stomach. It was enough for him to feel panicked because what he had felt was peculiar and new to him…

No, it was not new, it was just unfamiliar and it was scaring him…

Because he was afraid that if his feelings will bloom deeper, that person will be taken away from him…

Nevertheless, he tried his best to calm down and smiled back. And enjoyed this once in a lifetime moment. He doesn’t know why but he wanted to cherish this moment as if it will never happen again. He shook off that negative thought and looked at that one star. The one star that shines brightly only for him.  And seeing that star, he unconsciously blurted out the deepest feeling he had that night as he took a glance at the person who was seated beside him.

“Dara?” He called that name in a serene tone.

“Yes?” Dara looked at him with a raised eyebrow but the smile on her face never fades.

“Thank you for tonight. Thank you for being in there while I was breaking down.” He said, his heart was full of sincerity for her. Because in one blink of an eye, he realized so many things, the things that he needed to realize the most.

Dara smiled. And gently shook her head. “Don’t thank me Hyuk. I think I should be the one who should thank you. Thank you for having fun with me. It means a lot.” She pulled out a small piece of paper from her coat’s pocket. She spread it and tried to read it with the help of little light from the moon. She beamed at him while showing him the familiar paper from the bar earlier.  “I have completed my list now! Thank you for helping me in completing this tonight. I thought that I won’t complete this because I have a very complicated life. But now, I can’t believe I completed this in just one night!”

She stared at it for the longest time, and she can’t help but get teary while looking at the eight crossed-out numbers. For her, it was a dream come true. A dream that she once gave up because of the reason she loose hope of fulfilling it. But tonight, she was able to complete it with Hyukjae...

Hyukjae was observing her. Seeing the tears that were forming in her eyes, he immediately wraps his arms around her. He doesn’t know exactly what’s bothering her. Perhaps, she was just happy that she completed her list. Or perhaps, there is another reason for her tears. But he doesn’t have the time to ponder as he wanted to give the same comfort she had given to him. And it seems that Dara needed it as she clings to him as long as he pulled her into a solace hug. He gently patted her head and spoke.

“It’s okay Dara, I’m here.”

 
Dara allowed herself to cry as long as her fragile heart no longer feel the pain. Even if she said to herself that she won’t let herself cry, for the reason she hates crying, her tears are uncontrollably flowing. She never cried in front of the people who love her, especially in front of her family because she doesn’t want them to see her so vulnerable. But with Hyukjae, it seems that her vulnerability took over her self-consciousness.

She wanted to shed tears of joy because, finally, after a long time her dreams have come true. She wanted to cherish this moment. As this moment was a gift from the above. But despite convincing herself that she was happy, the sadness had engulfed her. She wanted to stop the ticking of the clock, and not to end this moment. But she had no choice. She has to leave and never come back.  

When she calmed down, she gently freed herself from his forbearing embrace. She wiped away the tears that had fallen from her eyes and took a deep breath before she faced him with a determined gaze.

“Hyuk. Can you promise me something?”

Hyukjae knitted his eyebrows. He was puzzled by the sudden behavior of Dara. He was nervous, but he answered her.

“Sure. What it is?”

Dara took a deep breath. She was tried to hold her tears and compose herself.  “Promise me that when you wake up from your dream tonight you will fix yourself and be happy. You will change your way and take care of yourself. You will stop torturing yourself. And you will forgive yourself for what had happened two years ago. Promise me you will move on. Can you promise me that?”

Hyukjae brows became more furrowed. He became more puzzled when he noticed the wryness in Dara’s voice. It seems like she was saying goodbye to him and will never come back.

“Why so sudden?” He asked.

“Just promise me,” Dara said simply. She held up her pinky finger, waiting for him to do the pink swear.

Hyukjae stared at Dara’s pinky finger for a minute before deciding to do what she was asking.

“I promise,” Hyukjae said, as the two of them locked their pinkies like two children who are making a childish oath. Except that the oath they’ve been making is not childish at all.

Dara's smile had bloomed once again on her lips. Now that she’s sure that he will be alright tomorrow and the upcoming days, she’s ready to leave. But before she leaves, there’s one thing she has to do.

“Thank you,” She said as the two of them let go of each other pinkies. “Now, Hyuk, I want you to close your eyes.”

Hyukjae was taken aback by the sudden request. He's hesitant to do so but seeing the seriousness in her eyes, he did what he was told to do. 

“No matter what happens, don’t open your eyes okay? Don’t back away.” Dara said and Hyukjae nodded in acknowledgment. She held both hands of him tightly, preventing him to move his hands and be still in his place.

She took a deep breath countless times and composing herself to do the one last thing she had to do. The thing that gives her mixed feelings, the feeling of pain, regrets, and happiness. She was never a fan of goodbyes but in life, we have to say goodbye to have new beginnings. And that was what she aimed for, she wanted to give a new beginning to Hyukjae...

She slowly leans her face forward until there’s just a small gap between their faces. She held her breath as she doesn’t want to scare him on how close she is to him. She observed his face and noticed the visible marks of tiredness, pain, and sorrow to every nook and cranny of his face. She made a vow that this will be the last time he will look like that because she will turn all of his nightmares into a beautiful dream. She took a glanced on his cherry-like lips. It was a lip that enough to make her feel ecstatic. She wanted to feel that lips for infinity, but that infinite time was only good for tonight.

She slowly pressed their lips together, giving him a tender kiss in the process. She felt that his body became rigid, but she gripped his hands tightly, sending him a silent signal to calm down. And when she felt that he finally calmed down, she inwardly smiled and enjoyed the bliss of the moment. She began taking a mental sketch, describing the lips that were like an ecstasy. She savors the taste of this one cherry lips.

She didn’t know how long they have been engaged in a blissful sensation, but she knew that it was the right time to let go; it was the right time to say goodbye. Without breaking the kiss, without letting go of his hands, she uttered her silent goodbye.

“Goodbye Hyuk. See you again in our next lifetime....”

“Hyukjae!” Heechul shook the shoulders of Hyukjae furiously. He’s been trying to wake up his brother for an unkempt time now, but it seems that he was not planning to wake up soon. 

“Lee Hyukjae!” Heechul shouted and slapped Hyukjae’s face so hard that it made him stood up straight in flash. He whimpered in pain while holding his throbbing head. It was like that his head is splitting in half.  He tried to open his eyes, but his vision was blurry. He blinked his eyes multiple times to fix his vision but no matter what he does his vision was still blurry. And he realized that he was crying.

Heechul, seeing the tears in Hyukjae’s eyes, panicked. He panicked because his tears are so sudden that they brought worry to his heart.

 “Why are you crying, are you okay?” Heechul asked as he took a seat in the bed beside Hyukjae.

Hyukjae wiped his tears and he tried to calm down. He took on his surroundings and he realized that he was in his bedroom. He is still wearing the clothes he had wore last night when he went to the bar for a drink. He looked at his brother who was looking at him with very worried eyes.

“Hyung, how did I got home last night?” He asked as he didn’t have the memory of what had happened last night.

“Jungsoo and I picked up you at the bar last night,” Heechul responded. “You were dead drunk, and Kyungsoo called us.”

Hyukjae nodded in acknowledgment as he tried to remember what had happened last night. The moment he reached the bartender table, he was drinking nonstop until he passed out - his normal routine of drinking; but last night was completely different.

“Hyung, I dreamed about a girl,” Hyukjae said.

“Really? Who?” Heechul asked as his brows are creased. “It is the reason why you are crying when you woke up?”

Hyukjae nodded once again as a response. He had a nice dream. He dreamed about a girl named Dara, who at first he finds naïve but he didn’t know that she would give him a blissful feeling that he never felt. It was a dream that gives him a surreal feeling that he needed to distinguish if it’s just a dream or a reality. It was the first time, he admitted to himself that he was having fun since the beginning of his messed up life. It was the first time that he let out the feeling of anguish that he never knew how to get rid of and it was comforting. He finds himself crying the moment, she kissed him. The kiss that he experienced in his dream was one of a kind kiss. It was like the kiss of hope, happiness, healing, and a new beginning.

As he promised her that the moment he would wake up from his dream, he would change his way, he will fix his life, he will move on, and he will stop torturing himself. And to do all of it he needed to do the right thing...

“Hyung, let’s visit Jieun.”

Author's Corner

Hello! I am sorry it took me a long time to drop an update! I have been busy these past few weeks because of work. TT_TT
I hope you are still there...

The story is nearing the end.
I will try to update again very soon!

Please take care :)