“Okay, dear, I’m going out now!”

“Bye, mom! I love you!”

“I love you! Don’t forget that we have to go to your cousin’s house later! Be ready once I get home!”

“Alright, mom! Bye!”

Without another word, your mom opened the front door and left for work, just like your father. You found yourself home alone on a Friday of the summer break. It wasn’t noon yet but you were already searching for food. You opened the refrigerator and scavenged for food. Ugh, there’s nothing to eat. You turned your head to look at the clock on the wall. I’ll just go to the grocery store.

You your heel and headed out the kitchen. You stepped out of the kitchen, staring at your feet, and ended up bumping into a body. You gasped then looked up at who it was that you bumped into. It was Se Hun standing there and behind him were Lu Han, Chanyeol and Xiu Min

“Ah! You guys scared me!” you gasped, placing a hand on your heart beating fast. “What are you guys doing here?”

“We came here to watch over you,” Se Hun stated.

An expression of puzzlement replaced your surprised face. “Uh, what? Where’s everyone else?”

“They’re out. They’re looking around your city for the tree…or at least any sign of it.”

You nodded your head. You squeezed past them and went straight for your living room. You flopped onto the couch and grabbed the remote off the coffee table. The four continued to stand there, staring at you with wide eyes. “You guys can join me here. Make yourselves comfortable or something,” you shrugged. You sat up from the couch and sat in the single couch against the other wall. “You guys can sit there if you want.” Then, you glued your eyes to the television.

The four gave each other bewildered looks before taking a seat on the couch. Chanyeol scrunched his nose up before walking ahead and taking a seat on the vacant couch. The others did the same and joined Chanyeol. They sat up straight with their hands folded in their laps. You stole a side view glance of them and snorted quietly.

You continued to watch the television, almost forgetting their presence. Every now and then, they were startled by your sudden outburst of laughs. After a while, Chanyeol called out your name.

“Yes?”

“What do you find so interesting about…uh, that?” Chanyeol gestured to the television. You looked at the television then back at Chanyeol. You raised an eyebrow at him, stifling laughter.

“Do you know what it is?”

“Of course we do! Do you think we’re stupid? I’m sure we know just about this planet as much as you do.”

You gulped. “Then, why do you need me to come with you to look for that tree if you know so much about Earth?”

“We don’t know much about humans though.”

“…So you need me to teach you more about humans? While we travel the world?”

They all shrugged but then nodded their heads in reply. Lu Han answered, “I went through your mind and picked up the things you know about your city. Everyone else is looking around the city with the facts they know from me that I know from you. If that makes any sense.”

You bit your lip and shook your head. “No, it doesn’t really make sense…but ever since meeting you guys, when has anything ever made sense?” You flashed a smirk then focused your attention on the television screen again.

*****

Ding! Dong!

You opened the door to see eight handsome males. “Oh…it’s you, guys. Come in. I’m sure you already know that the other four are here.” You dragged your feet back to the living room. Four hours had passed since Xiu Min, Chanyeol, Lay and Se Hun had showed up at your door. While you watched TV, they would explore your house. They would roam through the other bedrooms without your knowing though they did tell you they’d be looking around your house. It didn’t bother you though. They’re just curious, you thought.

You plopped onto the single couch once again with a huff. Chanyeol, who was still lounging on your couch, had the remote on his hand, kept switching the channels. Eventually, he stopped on a channel with a bunch of girls on stage from what you could see.

“Ah, that’s Girls’ Generation!” you exclaimed, realizing who it was. The members of famous girl group were performing on stage happily. You clapped along to the song in high spirits. The twelve beings looked at each other curiously. “They’re pretty, right?” You pointed to the television, smiling. You thought that Girls’ Generation was a group of talented and beautiful woman and so did the twelve beings. You turned your head to see their reactions. Your eyes almost bulged out of their sockets when you saw Baekhyun’s jaw open almost all the way to the ground. You laughed at Baekhyun.

“Who’s that?” Chanyeol asked nonchalantly, pointing to the screen. Your laughter died down as you looked at the television to see Taeyeon, the leader of Girls’ Generation singing.

You let out a quiet squeal. “That’s Kim Taeyeon! She’s the leader of this girl group.”

“Now, who’s that?”

“Jessica Jung! She’s one of the members from overseas!”

"And that?”                  

“Seohyun, the youngest member!”

Their mouths were still not closed as the girls on your television screen continued to perform on stage. “That’s Kim Hyoyeon, she’s the best dancer of them,” you explained. “That’s Yoona, the face of the group…Sooyoung is another dancer and she’s the tallest member…Tiffany is the other member from overseas…Sunny is the cute vocalist…Yuri is another dancer with the best body!” You were delighted that they listened to you so intently. It was a bit weird but it was the first time you’ve seen them interested in, well, humans. I guess aliens like them can find some humans attractive.

That’s how the next three days went. They would come over to your house whenever your parents had work. Some would explore your house some more while the others would be out in the city, looking for any sign of their beloved tree. You began to slowly enjoy their presence more. That feeling of tension went away. You started to warm up to them, forgetting that they needed you only to help them find the halves of the tree. Then, on the fourth day, the day before you had to leave, they didn’t come to your house. Your parents had work that day and you found yourself lazing around on the couch. You wondered endlessly where they were yet you couldn’t help but somehow feel relieved. Maybe, it was all just a dream. Or maybe they found some other person to help them.

It was past eight you got a phone call.

“Hello?”

“Hi, dear, your father and I are going out to eat with some of my co-workers.”

“Oh,” you breathed.

“We’ll bring back some food, don’t worry.” You could tell your mom was smiling as she spoke. You scratched your forehead as you held the phone between your ear and your shoulder.

You sighed, “Okay. Come home safely.”

“Don’t worry, dear. We’ll probably be home a little past…ten? We’ll be around that time.”

“Okay, mom. I’ll see you later then.”

“Bye, dear. I love you.”

“I love you, too,” you croaked. You hung up without another word. It wasn’t until then you remembered that it was your last day. You tried to convince yourself that the twelve males were just joking and had actually fled away already. With a heavy heart, you practically dragged yourself up the staircase and to your room.

You opened the door to find Kris sitting casually on your bed. You took a step back and gasped. “Geez, Kris, can’t you come through the front door?” you asked with a hand on your heart. You walked into your room and began to absentmindedly play with the objects around you.

“Hi to you, too,” Kris said sarcastically.

“What do you need? And where’s everyone else?”

“They’re waiting for us…so come.”

Kris held his hand out for you. You narrowed your eyes but without another thought, you slowly took his hand in yours. Your heart raced as Kris stood up from your bed. He looked down at you with smoldering eyes.

“Do you want to walk or do you want to fly?”

Do I want to fly…? This is definitely a hard decision, you sarcastically thought. “Um,” you began, biting your lip, “It’s up to you.”

“Fine,” Kris huffed. “We’ll fly.” He began to lead you down your staircase. You hastily slipped your shoes, your hand still in Kris’. Even though you didn’t take that long, you could tell Kris was getting irritated. So impatient. With that, he opened the front door and led you outside. He looked around for anybody but it was clear. “Ready?” he asked with a smirk. You nodded your head and with your free hand, you pulled your hood on. He chuckled and soon, the two of you were darting past everyone. No one had noticed.  You travelled very quietly and quickly by Kris’ skill. Your eyes shut as the journey continued. You didn’t exactly know where Kris was bringing you but you guessed that the other eleven would be there. Kris began to slow down and began to walk. You tripped forward but with Kris’ hand still holding onto yours, you didn’t fall flat on your face. Then, he let go of your hand.

“We’re here.”

“I think I know that, Kris.”

“Really? I didn’t think you would with that thick skull of yours.”

You rolled your eyes and trailed behind Kris. You looked around to see that you were on the path you always ran on. It was a couple metres before you’d get to the clearing but the two of you made it. You might not have noticed but once you saw the other eleven gathered in the middle of the clearing, your facial expressions brightened and a warm smile formed on your face. They called your name and waved to you. You waved back to them delightfully and walked to them.

“How was your day?” Se Hun politely asked.

You shrugged. “It was alright. Just a usual day I’d spend in the summer break, I guess.” You gave a sheepish smile to him. The corners of his mouth lifted and he smiled back at you cheekily. “How was yours?”

“Tiring. We continued to look for any half of the tree but we did not have any luck. We looked everywhere in your city and we have not been able to find it.”

“So,” Suho in, “We’re going to start looking out of here. We found two or three things that could possibly help us.”

You looked up from the ground. “What? You found what?”

"While we were looking around the city, we found a few ‘things’ that could possibly help us along the way.”

“Well…what are they?”

“We won’t show you yet,” Suho stated. The corner of your mouth twitched and so did your eye. You scratched your forehead. You were slightly annoyed that Suho or anyone else didn’t say anything at all. Biting your lip, you realized that they must have had a good reason not to tell you or show anything of what they found so you paid attention to what they were about to say.

“Tonight’s your last night,” Xiu Min said. You could hear a bit of sadness as he said that. You knew he was trying to be sympathetic but even then, you didn’t feel any better.

You nodded your head.

“We have a plan.”

You bit your lip timidly. “Um…what? For what?”

Xiu Min answered, “Well, how are you supposed to leave your family without upsetting them?” There was a sad smile on his face. He was right. Xiu Min was upset himself that you had to leave your family but all he really wanted was to go back home as well. He pulled away from your gaze and met the others’ eyes. Some showed no mercy while the rest had blank expressions. Xiu Min turned back to you to find you frowning. All their hearts, even those who didn’t sympathize, felt their hearts twinge.

“I don’t know,” you mumbled. You blinked a couple times with your head lowered. “I didn’t think about that.” You scratched your forehead trying to figure out what to say to your parents yourself. What are they going to think if I tell them, “Mom, Dad, I have to leave home for who knows how long to help a bunch of aliens find some parts of their planets’ source of life so they can go back home safely and defeat these other aliens?” How would they react?

“They won’t,” Lu Han spoke. He was reading your mind again but by doing that, he was answering your question and explaining the plan they had. “You don’t have to tell them. My ability is to read minds, right?” You nodded your head. “Not only that, I can also move things with my mind.” You nodded your head again. “But what you didn’t know is that I have one other ability having to do with the mind.”

“What is it?”

“I can erase one or two things in someone’s mind. It only works if I don’t use my other abilities for a while.”

You playfully scoffed, “Then, don’t read my mind!” Then, your expressions became serious again. “So, what are you going to do? What will you erase in my parents’ minds so that I don’t have to tell them?”

What Lu Han said next almost broke your heart. And everyone else’s when they saw the look on your face. “I’m going to erase the memories of you.”

*****

The doorbell rang. You were sitting in your room with a backpack open on your bed. Lu Han and Tao were in your room with you. You looked up at them with a dark expression on your face before going down the stairs and opening the door.

Upon seeing your parents, you enveloped them in your arms and squeezed.

“O-oh,” your mom gasped, “Honey, we’re glad to see you, too, but this is a little tight.”

Your dad jokingly asked, “You missed us that much?”

You nodded your head and let go of them. It was after tonight they would forget you. Lu Han and Tao were upstairs to carry out the plan. The plan consisted of Lu Han staying unseen and erasing your parents’ minds while they were asleep. Tao was just there as extra company. All of this would happen after you finished packing.

“How was your day?”

You replied back to your mother, “It was alright. You know, staying at home, watching TV, what else?” You smiled as your mother smiled at you. You would miss her warm smile. You knew, for sure, you were going to miss her dearly. “How was your day?”

This time, it was your dad who answered. “Oh, you know same old, same old. Just going to work then eating with some friends.” You chuckled at how laidback he was. Then, you sighed after realizing you would miss your father so much.

The three of you went up the staircase and into their room.

“Shouldn’t you be going to sleep now, too?” your mom asked.

You shrugged. “I guess.”

“Then, go to sleep now, honey.” Your mom stepped forward and gave you a light kiss on the forehead. You could the tears pricking at the rims of your eyes. Your nose was getting stuffier. You turned to your father who was already making his way into the bathroom. You didn’t want them to sleep so soon but maybe it would be easier if you got it over with. Maybe, Lu Han can erase the memories of my parents.

You hugged your mom. You held her tight, wishing that she knew everything and understanding why you would have to leave. “I love you so much, mommy. Good night.”

“Good night, dear. I love you just as much as you love me.” She kissed you once again on the forehead. You gently squeezed her again before slowly and painfully letting go. You your heel and ran to the bathroom. You barged right in to see your dad undoing his belt. You ran straight to him and embraced him tightly.

“Good night, daddy,” you said quietly, “I love you a lot, daddy.”

Your dad chuckled and hugged you back, your hair. “Good night. I love you a lot, too.” You reached up and kissed your dad on the cheek, only to get a kiss on your forehead from him. “Go to sleep now.”

You lied unwillingly, “I will.”

With that, you left the room with one last, “I love you!” There was a small voice in your head that said, “Goodbye…”

*****

“Stop crying! We need to do this!”

“I-I’m sorry, T-Tao! I just…”

“Lu Han, can you shut her up?”

“Tao, just let her. At least, she’s coming with us.”

You couldn’t hear what they were talking about after that because your sniffling was too loud.

Tao asked grumpily, “Why can’t you erase the memories of her parents? At least, she won’t have to remember either!”

“Hey! I’ve been trying to make her forget us this whole time but it’s not working! I don’t know why! Just let her cry a bit more, okay?”

Tao crossed his arms over his chest. He bit his lip to keep himself from stomping on the floor. He was slightly confused at the same time. Lu Han’s power doesn’t work on her? Hmm…the rest of ours are fine.

When your sobs died down and you were just sniffling, Lu Han gave a pat on your back. “Are you okay?”

You sniffled. “I guess so.”

“Then, can we go?”

“I guess so.”

Tao opened up your bedroom door and slowly, the three of you walked out.

Lu Han commanded Tao, “Bring her outside now.” Tao nodded his head once and took your hand. His hand was warm but his fingertips were cold. The backpack swinging off your shoulder seemed a bit light. You didn’t know how long you’d be gone for but it seemed like what you brought wasn’t enough. They had told you, “An outfit for each season.” You were a bit confused but did what they said. They were all comfortable clothes such as sweatpants and t-s. Lu Han and Tao said that what you brought was fine. Besides that, you brought all your toiletries, a towel, a water bottle and extra shoes.

Your backpack continued to swing around as you and Tao walked outside. You watched Tao’s jet black hair bounce on his head then stared at his hands. He turned around and something stirred in his heart. He opened the front door, allowing you to step outside first. You didn’t know how long it would be until you could take another step back in. Tao watched your face sadden. There was this sudden urge he felt to cry but he held it back. Maybe that’s how I look when I had to leave Exo. You looked at Tao sadly. His eyes were clear. Suddenly, your eyes watered and you began to cry again. To your surprise, Tao brought you into his arms gently. He was hesitant at first but then, he was just wishing you would stop crying.

“You won’t be gone for that long,” Tao whispered to you with a sad look on his face. “It won’t be that long.”

Lu Han, on the other hand, was still upstairs. He swallowed the spit in his throat as he clasped his hand around the doorknob to your parents’ room. He turned it. It creaked open but your parents did not wake up. He stared at your parents solemnly. This might’ve been a bad idea. But without further ado, he closed his eyes. He brought one of his hands up to rub his temples. He concentrated on your parents who were right in front of him. He searched through their minds, seeing the past. He found many memories of you, a lot of which brought a smile to his own face. Lu Han’s heart was shattering to pieces as he realized he had to get rid of all those. But he had a different idea. He concentrated very hard and very long. Instead of erasing them, he burned all of those images of you into his brain. All those memories would be stored in his mind.

*****

As you, Tao and Lu Han were walking to the clearing along the path, Lu Han began to explain what he did.

“I transferred all of their memories into my brain. They don’t have any more memories of you but if I restore them in their brains, they’ll be able to remember everything. I don’t know what will happen when you see them again after I restore their brains though.”

“That’s somewhat of a relief. It’s still a bit upsetting but I’m sure they’ll do alright without me.”

Tao sighed.

As the three of you walked along the sidewalk, you knew that there was a lot more to come for all of you.