“Steal my food again and, friend or not, I will kick you out of my house.”

Tao quickly moved away from the box of cookies sitting on the counter, standing all too innocently beside Luhan after mouthing ‘how did he know?’ at no one in particular. The latter could only shake his head as Xiumin reached past him to whack the back of Tao’s head; Lay and Chen snickering from their respective spots on either side of Kris’s chair. Tao scowled at the eldest male in the room; his hand reaching up to rub his now sore head.

“Didn’t anybody teach you how to ask permission?” Chen shook his head.

Tao pouted. “Gege, can I have a cookie?”

Kris snorted, pushing back carefully from the dining table. His friends watched silently as he reached for the walking stick leaning against the wall only to miss it by an inch or two.  Lay had quickly taken a step to move the older man but Luhan stopped him with a meaningful look. A sigh escaped his lips as they watched Kris move his hand slowly towards the left until his fingers touched the familiar stick.

“Kris, are you going somewhere?” Xiumin asked.

“I’ll just go to the park.” He replied as he grasped the walking stick in his hand and slowly pulled himself to his feet.

Lay and Luhan exchanged a look; the former opening his mouth to speak. “Do you want us to come with you, gege?”

“No need.”

                They all knew better than to say to otherwise, merely answering in chorus when Kris reminded them to lock the house up when they all leave. They knew that despite his handicap, Kris was someone who was and would always be independent and would take it hardly on himself whenever he depended too much on others. Yet, they couldn’t help but think… how long would Kris choose to live like that?”

o-o-o-o-o

He wasn’t born blind.

But it felt like it had been so much longer than a lifetime since he was last blessed with the gift of sight.

                It was something people would always take for granted; Kris mused as he sat on his usual bench in his favourite park. He kept his eyes closed because opening them would just be flat out pointless. He longed to see what this park looked like – just how many trees were there, what kind of flowers bloomed amongst the bushes. Lay had patiently described it as detailed as he could muster when he first came there and Kris had appreciated the younger man’s efforts. He just wished it would be enough all the time.

He hated this feeling; the one of deprivation.

                Being blind was not all that bad. He had to admit that. He had learned to appreciate the simplest things in life. He had learned to trust his other senses, his intuition and his gut. It was those aspects of who he was he treasured the most because he knew not everyone had them. The idea comforted him.

                His eyes that couldn’t see snapped open at the sound of a strong barking approaching from nearby. A dog. Kris couldn’t help but wonder what breed it was, what the color of its fur was. He had just begun mentally listing off the possibilities when he felt a pair of eyes on him and a certain kind of feeling coursed through him soon after.

                Would people still find him perfect once they found out that he was blind? Kris inwardly laughed without humor at the thought. Of course he knew what kinds of looks people gave him. He was fully aware of how he looked like and thanks to that, he could easily distinguish the two most common looks people give him.

The first one was one of awe – or something that resembled it – because, according to a certain Huang Zi Tao, he was like Zeus’s better looking younger brother.

The second one was one of pity or disappointment… once they realize he wasn’t as perfect as they thought he was.

                Kris was pretty sure that whoever was staring at him right now had the first kind of look on his or her face. Kris shifted uncomfortably in his seat, suddenly missing the privacy and comforts of his home. Leaning down to pick the walking stick from the ground, he froze as he felt something in him shift. Instinct – or common sense; whichever of the two – told him that whoever was staring at him was no longer looking at him in awe.

                Kris stiffened, anticipating that annoying feeling that always hit him when someone would look at him with pity or disappointment. But he didn’t feel anything like that at all. Instead, a different kind of feeling spread inside of him. Why was that person looking at him so thoughtfully it seemed? He felt no judgment in his or her gaze, no disappointment. Just curiosity it seemed.

For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out why.

o-o-o-o-o

“I don’t get it.”

A look of confusion crossed Tao’s face; the younger man seated across Kris as they sipped their coffee in the latter’s dining room. “What, gege?”

He sighed. “I don’t know who it was… but I can’t get that person out of my mind.”

Confusion was soon replaced by inquisitiveness. “Who?”

“There was this person…” The taller man didn’t know why he was telling his friend all these things but he really just needed to get it all out. “He or she was staring at me in the park. I was sure of it. But I felt so different… not like how I usually feel when people look at me in pity or in amazement.”

“How was he… or she staring at you?”

“I…” Kris scowled when he couldn’t think of the right word. “I don’t know. I could tell that the person was curious… like there were so many questions. But I felt some form of understanding from him or her. Like I wasn’t being judged at all because I’m like this.”

Tao blinked, completely not used to this side of his best friend. Silence reigned in the air as the two men kept to their own thoughts, reflecting on what had just been said. Tao watched as his best friend attempted to act normal only to zone out in thought of what he assumed was that ‘meeting’ with the stranger in the park. A smile made its way across his lips; a soft chuckle coming from him soon after.

“For your own sanity, gege, I hope it’s a girl.”

“Huang Zi Tao!”

o-o-o-o-o

“Harry!” A yelling female voice broke the silence of his surroundings. “Harry, get back here!”

                He could feel something moving rapidly towards him but Kris chose to remain seated, staring ahead as he relied on his senses to tell him what was going on around him. The movement gradually slowed down until it came to a stop and with amusement, Kris felt something suddenly by his feet. Wanting to reach down to touch whatever it was, he chose to remain frozen in his place when he felt a strikingly familiar pair of eyes on him.

His breath hitched up in his throat as inconspicuously as possible.

It was that same curious, understanding gaze from days ago.

                Something was suddenly walking around his feet and he knew by how its thick hair was brushing against his jeans, it was a dog. It was too that same day dog from the other day, if his guess was lucky. A smile twitched at the corners of his lips but he made sure his face remained stoic and blank. He could tell that she knew that he knew there was a dog walking around his feet.

“Is the dog yours?”

He could feel her surprise even if she was standing a few feet away from the bench. “I-I’m so sorry.”

                Did she just stutter? Kris thought in amusement, groaning silently almost immediately when realization kicked in. Tao’s going to be happy once he finds out that person I told him about is a girl. Nonetheless, he stayed silent and unmoving as she slowly approached him pulled the dog away from him. Kris finally allowed himself to smirk silently when it felt like the dog wouldn’t move an inch, judging by the frustrated sigh that escaped the girl’s lips; the dog going as far as to lie down by his feet.

“He likes you.”

“Pretty much.” He replied, bending forwards so that he could run his hand through the dog’s long fur. He wondered what color it was. “What’s the name?”

It took her a moment or two longer to reply. “Harry.”

“Harry,” The sandy blond haired man repeated; a sudden smile gracing his handsome face when he felt the dog stand under his touch. “I’m Kris. You are?”

“Sooyoung.” She replied; her own name nearly not making its way out of . It surprised him as much as it surely surprised her that he had actually introduced himself to someone he completely knew nothing about. “It’s nice to meet you.”

                Kris turned his head towards the direction of her voice, hearing her struggle to stifle her grasp. He knew without seeing that their eyes had met; hers that could see, his that couldn’t. He barely knew her – sans her name and the name of her dog – but it was like he knew her for so long already and it astounded him. But he wasn’t sure if he was ready to think more of it. This was all so knew to him; for someone he barely knew to treat him like he wasn’t blind, like he was just like every other person out there. She hadn’t once asked if he was really blind. He got up on his feet; walking stick in his hand. He nodded once to her before he turned around; his arm reaching out to hold the stick in an angle to the ground.

“It’s nice to meet you too.”

o-o-o-o-o

“I wasn’t born blind.”

“Really?” He heard the clear surprise in her tone but he knew it was more because he was suddenly sharing something so private to her.

                It was over the course of a few weeks that Kris got to know Sooyoung more and vice versa. It was during that time too that he got to paint a picture of her in his mind; thanks to the purely coincidental time she had seen him with Suho. Suho had gone on and on about how beautiful Sooyoung was with her long chocolate brown hair, tall and slender frame and all that, leading Kris to scowl in annoyance at the younger man’s obvious crush on his new friend.

“I got into a car accident two years ago. I was with my whole family.” Kris focused on playing with Harry as the memories flooded back in slowly and painfully. “All of us lived… but I suffered a trauma to my brain and now I’m like this.”

“There’s nothing wrong with who you are.”

She said it so casually yet it had that underlying meaning that made him turn his head towards her. “Thanks, Soo.”

“Is there a chance you’ll get to see again?”

“A fifty percent chance.” He replied honestly. “I’m not banking on it.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t want to gamble.”

                It was over the course of a few weeks that Kris got to know Sooyoung more and vice versa. The first couple of meetings had purely been coincidental but Kris’s fondness of Harry led to them planning their meetings; most of which were in the park that was near both their homes. What fascinated – and worried – Kris was how his first impression of her changed and he saw her as someone so beautiful inside and outside more and more despite the flaws that rarely stood out in her personality.

It had been a running joke between them actually; how he had what she called a ‘ face’. Kris had grimaced at that but shrugged it off soon enough, not really caring what others thought of him… Well, with the exception of one Choi Sooyoung. What surprised – and worried – Kris, too, was how he looked forward to his regular meetings with Sooyoung so much so as it hadn’t gone unnoticed by the eleven men he loved as his own brothers. But despite the fact that they all wanted to know what really was going on, Suho had set his foot down and reminded the rest of the boys to let Kris be.

“You know, you should get a dog.”

 “You’re tired of seeing me already so I get to play with Harry?” Kris arched an eyebrow, not knowing what to exactly feel with her suggestion. “If you want, you can bring Harry here and leave him with me.”

“It’s not that…” She protested immediately. “It’s just that I think a dog helps more than a walking stick.”

The tall man huffed, ruffling Harry’s fur at her words. “What do you mean by that?”

It took her a moment’s pause to reply and he knew she was thinking of the right words to say. Sooyoung had always been careful not to offend him and if only he had the guts, he’d tell she didn’t have to worry. “Well, I just noticed that it’s better for you to move around when you have Harry with you. I guess it’s because a dog has eyes and a stick doesn’t.”

His lips curled up into a smirk. “So can I have Harry then?”

“Yah!” She all but shrieked in protest but he could hear the veiled laughter in her tone. “Buy yourself another dog.”

Kris laughed before straightening up by Harry’s side. “I need to go. My friend, Tao, is waiting for me.”

He could feel her hesitance. “Are you sure you don’t want me to bring you there?”

“I can manage, Soo.” He smiled slightly. “But thanks.”

The sandy blond haired man turned towards that familiar direction, letting his walking stick guide him. “Kris.” She called out before he could get anywhere farther. “Be safe.”

“You too.”

                Kris turned around and flashed her one of his rare, grateful smiles before he continued walking towards the street again. He could feel the grass beneath his converses and took more cautious steps, knowing that the grass would soon turn into the cement pavement. He had taken another step forward when he heard loud barking behind him. It sounded like Harry.

                Harry barked louder and louder as Kris continued walking; a part of him wondering why the dog seemed uneasy about something. It couldn’t be Sooyoung, right? His eyebrows furrowed at the idea, thinking of turning around and going back to Sooyoung when he heard something else very near him, approaching him fast. His heart beat doubled, tripled.

“KRIS!”

                If he had gone a step or two more, the inevitable would’ve happened. He knew it. Kris let out a shaky breath as he heard the car zoom past him. He could feel Harry’s teeth tightly biting his pant leg; a part of him barely realizing the fact that Harry hadn’t bitten his leg itself. All he could focus on was the pair of arms around his torso belonging to the trembling body pressed against his back.

“I told you you need a dog.”

“I’ve got Harry.” He exhaled a shaky, relieved breath as he rested his hands on her clamped ones and squeezed them reassuringly. “I’ve got you.”

“Are you saying I’m a dog?” Kris could feel her calming down little by little as she remained pressed against his back.

“You’re my eyes… and I’ve got the most beautiful one.”

o-o-o-o-o

“Well… that was fun.”

Kris laughed at the tone of her voice as they walked towards where her car was parked. “Why do you sound so surprised?”

“Considering it was Heechul oppa, Tiffany and Jessica we just had snacks with? I promise you, I have all the right in the world to be surprised.” She snorted; one of her hands clasping his and the other holding his walking stick. “It’s like, you know… Some kind of spirit transformed them into angels a while ago.”

He shook his head at her reply and intertwined his fingers with hers. “Hey, Soo… Remember what I told you about the fifty percent chance that I’ll get to see again?”

“What about it?”

“I think I’ll bank on it after all.”

Sooyoung stopped mid-step, causing Kris to stop along with her and Harry to growl in annoyance when he was suddenly pulled back. “What… What made you change your mind?”

                Kris smiled, feeling Sooyoung’s curious gaze on him. Ever since he lost his sense of sight, it was such a struggle to see the good things in his life. Now here came Choi Sooyoung, waltzing into his life unintentionally, unannounced. He didn’t know what he did to deserve her. But he was just damn happy that she became who she was to him – the best that has ever happened in his life, the best that his life has.

“I wouldn’t want to miss the chance to see you.” Kris lowered his head and pressed his lips on hers. It was easier for him to do that now even if he was blind.

He had a lot of practice.