Nichkhun wakes up feeling like he'd been trampled by a herd of cattle. Desperate for some caffeine in his system, he attempts to thrash around to roll his body off the bed so he can haul his to the kitchen. He must be spent, though. His body refuses to move even when his wide awake mind willed it to.

He looks around to confirm that he is indeed in his room, unbounded, but something isn't right. Even though his soul is still inside the body, it feels like he has no control over it. Like he is trapped inside his own flesh. Is this what they call sleep paralysis?

It couldn't be, because a minute later Nichkhun sits up even though he has no idea why. Yes, he wants to get up, but why isn't he jumping out of bed, or screaming for help?

A knock on the door, and Wooyoung saunters into the room like he owns the place, climbing onto the bed and lying beside the semi paralyzed man. Now not only is he experiencing a sort of out of body experience, his mind is also fuzzy from the smell of Wooyoung's recently shampooed hair.

The object of his affection took a snapshot of Nichkhun's sleepy face, admiring the porcelain like skin glowing under the sunlight rays. "Let's run away today," he says, not providing any further explanation as if it was the most natural thing. He wants to ask why, where to, what the hell is going on; but he feels his head slightly tilt downwards before quickly lifting up again, and he unwillingly agreed to this crazy plan.

His feet touch the carpet of his room and he moves towards his door, leaving Wooyoung behind to make his bed. The doorknob feels unreal as he grabs onto it, turns it and gives the door a push. Nichkhun steps out and finds himself stepping right into his beautiful black Audi.

Confused, he turns to see the car door shut behind him (or rather beside him since he's strapped in the driver's seat) and the car comes to a sudden halt. Wooyoung the passenger steps out of the stationary vehicle and Nichkhun follows suit, still perturbed by the time leap - or whatever it's called - that he'd just experienced. He approaches the baby faced man leaning on the hood of his car, ready to demand for an explanation, but all he does is stare. He stares at the soft tousled hair blown by the light breeze; stares as his face relaxes in utter bliss, enjoying the view from where he stood; stares into his mischievous eyes as he lunges forward and captures his lips into a searing kiss. Nichkhun didn't have to remind his body to respond.

They somehow ended up in his room again - how that happens doesn't really matter - but this time, the kisses aren't as amazing. They were quick, vapid pecks, like the ones they shared in bed just before they broke up. When did that happen again?

"How was the show?" Wooyoung asks in an emotionless tone. He hadn't specify what show he was talking about yet in some enigmatic way, Nichkhun knew exactly what he was talking about.

"Boring," he shrugs, not bothering to fill the silence his short answer had caused. A tiny part of him wonders why he's being a cold jerk to his love, but he doesn't question it too much. It's just how things are.
 

He closes his eyes, tired from whatever it was he did in the day, but opens them again when Wooyoung says something to him.

"There's so many people!" The younger man exclaims, his innocence overwhelming Nichkhun in his seat. He feels a tug on his hand. Their fingers were intertwined.

Another hand taps his shoulder and he flinches. Taecyeon guffaws at his reaction. "Dude, chill. I was just gonna ask if you and Wooyoung are rooming together."

"Huh?" He asks aloud. This time he knows it's himself, controlling his own body. But before he had a chance to ask what is happening, Nichkhun hears himself say, "yeah. I hope you don't mind." Wooyoung grins at him like a Cheshire cat. Why on earth is he happy again? Weren't they annoyed with each other not long ago?

The revved engine of the heavy vehicle he's in makes it difficult for him to follow their conversation. He strains his ears to find out where the heck they were heading to, only to hear a distant voice calling his name.

"Is he waking up? They keep reappearing as new memories."

Nichkhun's head whips around, scanning the faces on the bus to find out who had said that. He looks out the window to see a blur of faceless fans (literally blurred faces) holding up signs that didn't make sense at all. They weren't even real words.

His voice is once again stuck in his throat when he tries to call out to the person who seems to know what's up.

"Maybe it's a glitch. Just continue on." That voice again. He knows it from somewhere.

Wooyoung's head rests on his shoulder, lips grazing his sensitive neck, wickedly lightly where it felt really good. A torso drapes over his own heaving chest. Their lower regions are covered by a thin blanket but he can feel how they're both down there, too. It felt heavenly to have the petite body of his lover so close to his, even if he feels slightly lighter than usual.

He thinks there's something he had been wanting to ask, but he can't remember what it was. Something about an audience?

The bed creaks as Wooyoung shifts even closer, drawing invisible cartoons on his chest. He tries to concentrate on the soft movements of the fingers, guessing a few correctly, including the detailed drawing of an okcat on a bus.

"Weren't we on a bus?" He blurts out, and the memory sinks in. He'd been sitting in a bus less than 15 minutes ago.

Wooyoung draws his head back and sits up to look him in the eye. "What do you mean? What bus?"

"No, I'm sure of this. We were sitting together on a bus just before we started cuddling. I'm really sure that hap-"

A loud thunder claps outside and Nichkhun looks up to see a cyclone over his head. How is that even possible? Where did their roof go? A quake shakes the ground vigorously and he sees cracks forming just below their feet. He reaches out for Wooyoung but the younger just lay there not moving at all. Not even seeing at all through his glassy eyes. It was if he was on pause.

Nichkhun couldn't even scream as he falls through into a pit of darkness.

 

"Khun?"

His eyes shot open. The first he sees is Wooyoung's questioning eyes. The first thing he feels is hands linking together around his neck.

They are dancing in circles to an old English love song playing on Nichkhun's laptop. His heart is still weak from the shock of being swallowed by nothingness, but his body is apparently unharmed as he's able to lift his playful partner and twirl around to the slow beat. Something is wrong, he says in his mind. Something is very wrong.

The music player changes tracks. The worry in Wooyoung's eyes are now replaced by a spark of mischief. Nichkhun wants to stop horsing around and ask something - anything - that might get Wooyoung to explain why he's feeling so agitated, but it seems his significant other would much rather continue being silly, shaking his booty as instructed by the crass lyrics of the hip hop song.

Nichkhun laughs at the ridiculous body movements but instead of it sounding surreal (like the dancing and Wooyoung and everything) he surprises himself with an actual laugh. He tries again and wills himself to laugh. Not even a chuckle escaped his lips.

He (surreal Nichkhun) grabs a hold of Wooyoung's left wrist and gently guides him out of the room and into a balcony. None of this made sense to him because his room had no balcony and they didn't seem to be in Korea anymore. Judging from the heat, the smell of the air and the breathtaking view Nichkhun concludes he's back in his homeland.

With Wooyoung's arms wrapped around mid torso, the Thai leaves all rationality behind and let's himself enjoy this for a moment. After all, back when he was sane, his lover had left him out of the blue.

Oh yes, now he remembers a little. Wooyoung supposedly doesn't love him anymore.

"Khun, I have something for you," his bandmate stutters, cursing himself for fumbling with the words. Sweaty palms rub against his shorts in attempt to dry them before reaching into his back pocket and pulling out two chains with rings attached to them, tangled together. Another foul word rolls off his tongue and Nichkhun notes how it doesn't suit his baby face at all.

Nichkhun helps him separate the two pieces of jewelery and hands them both back, only to have one shoved back to him. He observes the pendant with a silly grin on his face, only to frown a little, taken aback when he realizes what these are. Their couple rings.

His hand shoots up to his neck and sure enough, he isn't wearing his. How did Wooyoung slip it off without him noticing?

The wind grows strong but the petite lover doesn't seem to notice it at all. He recites a short speech Nichkhun has heard before years ago, when the two of them first sneaked off by themselves to Thailand. Their first break ever from their hectic schedule.

"This isn't meant to tie us together or anything like that. This is to let you know that I...I lo-love you, Khun. I just..I mean...Damn it! You don't have to say it back. I'm sorry. I..."

Heavy rain fell on them. The roof isn't there anymore.

"Wooyoung, we have to go now," Nichkhun tries to rush him inside, only to find there is no inside anymore and they are standing on a floating platform. The storm is drowning the both of them but Wooyoung seems unfazed by it as he continues explaining how his ring isn't the same as Nichkhun's and how technically they aren't couple rings.

"Wooyoung!" He wills himself to grab his (amazingly dry) shoulders, startling both his lover and himself. That's when it dawned on him. He could now control not just his speech but his body movements as well. "We have to go! Now!"

The younger, unhappy by the fact that his love confession is ignored, removes himself from Nichkhun's grip and crosses his arms. "Why? Where to?"

Nichkhun's frustration grew by the second. Shouldn't it be obvious why they have to leave?!

The brittle foundation of the platform gives in and they both slide off the surface and fall into darkness. Nichkhun swears this feels like deja vu, only this time, he's holding onto Wooyoung tightly, trying to protect his frozen lover from whatever it is they're about to face.
 

Nichkhun wakes up again. This time his mind is in full control, having no trouble at all getting his body to sit straight up. He sees Wooyoung taking out clothes from his suitcase and arranging them into a smaller luggage.

He approaches his lover and carefully places a hand on his shoulder. Wooyoung relaxes under his touch, turning around briefly to smile at him. This time, it's fake again.

We're in Japan. I'm about to go to Thailand.

He recognizes the scene before him. This is the last night they spent together as lovers. His body trembles as he lets his tears pour out, failing to maintain his composure. The man before him pays him no attention as he busily sorts his boxers next to his socks. Wooyoung doesn't acknowledge him until he's done with the undergarments, moving onto the shirts and pants.

"Do you want to bring this one along?" He holds up a familiar red shirt, one Nichkhun had always made a point to bring wherever he goes. Before - before in the original timeline -  Nichkhun had only muttered a "looks good, Babe" without sparing a glance at the shirt because he was too busy tweeting on his phone. Now that he's aware of what comes next, he made a point to shower his love with the attention he deserves.

"Of course, Baby. It'll remind me of you. Better yet, I should bring a few of your shirts with me."

Wooyoung's hands pause midair before he proceeds to neatly fold the shirt. "Don't be dumb, Khun. You need to travel as light as possible."

The older chuckles bitterly. Normally, Wooyoung would take that as an invitation to playfully dump all his unwashed laundry into the luggage, but today Wooyoung doesn't humor him at all. Even in his mind his lover is unattached to him and ready to let go.

"What about this on-umph," The Thai stops him with a heated kiss. He misses this so much. It's been so long that Nichkhun feels like it's their first time showing affection again. Wooyoung doesn't respond immediately - guilt eating at him from the inside - but gives in and kisses back feverishly when Nichkhun whispers against his moist lips those three words that make him fall over and over again.

"I love you."  Another kiss. "I love you. Please don't leave me."

The two lovers keep their lips locked together while tears stream down their cheeks; the salty taste a reminder of how much they've been through together in the past five years. The words were never said out loud, but they were certainly implied on so many occasions:

We'll stay together through thick and thin. Forever.

And forever is definitely longer than five years.


Nichkhun brings the sleeve of his shirt to his eyes to wipe away his sadness. He blinks his red, puffy eyes and to his astonishment, Wooyoung went back to folding his clothes and there isn't a trace of tears or bloating on his face.

Wooyoung is sorting out boxers. Again.

Half of them are still in the big suitcase along with the red shirt. This is too mind boggling for him to comment on; all Nichkhun could do was just stare because what in the actual fuc-

"Do you want to bring this one along? It's nice."

He doesn't have to look to know which article of clothing he's talking about.

No. That's not it. Wooyoung doesn't usually compliment the shirt he bought for Nichkhun and he certainly didn't on their last night together.

"That's not what you're supposed to say," Nichkhun seethes, scaring the timid Wooyoung causing him to force out a nervous giggle. "Uh, what?"

"You're supposed to just ask if i want to take it with me. That's it. Not- wait, what are you doing?"

The chubby cheeks lift as the younger flashes him a genuine smile while holding up a pair of Calvin Klein boxers. "Helping you pack, remember?"

Nichkhun was just about to have a meltdown when the corner of his eye caught another major change: their beds were separated.

"Did you move the beds?" He asked ferociously while tugging on the hems of the bedsheets.

The younger man shook his head innocently, his eyes following Nichkhun's every move in wonder when he pushes their beds together, making sure there isn't any space between them. Wooyoung wants to start asking questions but decides to keep them to himself for now since Nichkhun looks absolutely livid. He only simmers down when the scene doesn't change for a while, smirking smugly thinking he'd beat the system.

But that was the extent of Nichkhun's power to stop this weird phenomenon. He couldn't do anything about the fading smell of Wooyoung's shampoo in his memory, the fading taste of his lips even while he ravishes the protesting man's lips; the fading memory of his feelings towards him.
 

But one thought comes back to him. Realization hits him hard.

My memory's fading. I asked for this. Oh God, this is all just in my head. I'm getting my memories locked away!

He tries to calm himself. It's too late now. This is it. We're letting go.
 

But Wooyoung is just sitting there, fingers paused on his lips where the tingling sensation of Nichkhun's sweet kisses lingers; and all the latter has to do is reach out his arm to hold him. His mind races with the untouched memories of Wooyoung and he remembers why he doubted this was the right decision. He loves him so much. He adores him more than life itself and would give anything to stay by his side. After all, isn't he the happiest when Wooyoung is, too?

Nichkhun starts screaming, trying to get himself to wake up. Again, the scene rewinds and Wooyoung is once again on the floor folding clothes. The Thai grabs him by the collar of his buttoned down pajamas and starts relaying all the memories of them together that he can think of. In between stories reminding him of their dates and life, he kisses him softly and assures him that he's in love with him, asking him to please, love him back.

The scene starts to fade. The walls of the hotel erode, leaving them exposed to the pull of the black hole down below. There isn't much he can do here, but if he wakes up right now he can stop the procedure, right?

The flustered Wooyoung panics when Nichkhun asks to be punched in the face. "I'm not into that!"

The tiles begin to fly off piece by piece. Soon all of them will be swallowed and he's not sure he'll be able to remember this in the next memory. So for the first time ever suicidal thoughts pop into his mind. Bracing himself for a great deal of pain, he knocks his head on the last wall standing, only to find his head could pass through like freaking Casper the friendly ghost. Jumping out the window is not an option anymore either.

The walls are gone completely now and Nichkhun stares at the bathtub in the fading bathroom. The hairdryer extension might just be long enough to reach it. Even though the thought of literally shocking himself is scaring him out of his mind, it's unlikely he'll actually die so might as well give it a shot. He runs in and turns the tap on, letting the water run. There's a smal leakage from the bottom right corner as water disappear into nothing and Nichkhun puts aside all his fears, holds his breath, and hurriedly drops the powered hairdryer into the quarter full tub.
 

Nichkhun barely registers the jolt as he immediately feels himself waking up again. In this scene, he drowsily opens his eyes to a young lady trying to gas him again.

"...never happened before...shock...high dosage..." The speech is choppy but at the back of his foggy mind, he knows exactly what they're talking about.

I don't want to go back.

He struggles to keep the gas mask away, trying to get his weak lips to move. "No more. no more," is all he could say.

"Hold on. I think he willingly came back. Doctor Moon, what do you reckon?"

A familiar figure came close to face him. After examining his heart rate and blood pressure, he asks him the one question he's more than happy to answer.

"Did you change your mind?"

Nichkhun nods eagerly, and smiles as he hears Doctor Baek's order.

"Change of plans. We're unlocking the previous memories."