There used to be a story about a boy. No one knew where he came from, no one knew who he was, the only thing they knew for certain was that he was blind. Well, that, and that he was looking for this certain ‘Great Perhaps’, per se. He himself  didn’t know where it was or how on earth he was supposed to find it, but he decided to just go on walking until the end.

He was crazy, some would say, and maybe he was. The vision of his Great Perhaps came to him in a vivid dream, after all. Nobody followed their dreams anymore, so the kid wasn’t too far from insane if you think about it. Dreams weren’t reality and therefore were nothing but a fleeting moment in which one had the freedom to imagine.

The blind boy traveled far and wide, past glistening dewy meadows and breathtaking rivers that gleamed with a striking sapphire blue. He treaded ahead on beaten paths, walking stick in hand without sparing a single second for the magical places that rained when it shouldn’t have and the sacred grounds where miracles happened to appear.

For some odd reason, no matter how amazing the sight, the boy would sigh and shake his head, saying that, “No, I’m sure this isn’t it.”

Eventually, word went around about a blind boy who ‘goes to seek a Great Perhaps’ which sent people all around bustling and hustling to see if their breathtaking monumental statues or stunning ancient shrine would be the place the blind boy was looking for. The towns people would gather all they had to try and please him; shower him with nonsensical gifts and such. They would treat him almost like a prince, leading him to their special place with a smug grin on their face, all certain that their pride and joy would undoubtedly be ‘the one’.

However, to their great dismay, the boy would simply smile, thank them and stroll away to his next possible destination. People would drop their jaws and gawk in silence because of their growing confusion and irritation at his rather quick judgements. They were baffled by the supposed ‘ignorance’ of the boy who couldn’t even see let alone possess the ability to judge the beauty of nature.

Eventually, the people who had the courage to come up and question him, did.

“Describe the world, boy,” they asked him.

In response, he would say, “The world is both a nightmare and a dream. Terrifying monsters from nightmares are people who are out there with stained hands, with heavy hearts, and battered faces others can’t ever bear to see. They are the people who outsiders think to be nightmares when in fact they are the ones who need the most hope. In the nightmares with rotting skeletons and shattered glass, innocent children die daily, from disease, starvation, abuse. The world as we know it is basically one big cycle of suffering. But, at the same time, there are those who try their best to spread the small gift given in their dreams. Happiness. Hope. Love. Peace. Despite all the nightmares and horrors the world has, there are also beautiful dreams that come with it. There are people out there who haven’t lost sight of these important dreams yet.”

They would stay silent for a while, as if contemplating his response, before asking their next question.

“Boy, if the world is both a dream and a nightmare, then what is reality?”

The boy would furrow his eyebrows for a little while, then smile again. He had a habit of smiling, that kid.

“Reality is either a dream or a nightmare.”

“Either?”

“It depends on the way you choose to live. Dreams and nightmares are only as real as you make them to be. In the same way, reality is only as real as you dream it to be. That’s the fact of life. Who’s to say that dreams and nightmares aren’t as real as the here and now? Is what a famous person once said. And I believe him.”

Again they would stare at him for a good period of time, then they would laugh in an almost maniacal loudness to conceal their surfacing nervousness. Anyone who knew would join in, merely assuming that since the boy was physically blind, he could not see the clear dividing line between the practical realities of the world and the childish dreams of those who were naïve enough to believe in uncertainties.

“Dreams are dreams,” they’d always say. “Created for fools who had nothing better to do as they passed time. They’re swimming about in your head; all of them far from any possible reality. From monsters, to fairies, to shadows lurking in the dark, to spirits or heroes or pixies from afar. It’s time to open your eyes to the real world and grow up. It’s time to leave the Land of Make Believe.”

That was what they always told the boy.

Of course, that reaction was to be expected. Since they were all older folks, they refused to think and have faith outside the scope of what was ‘known’. They refused to cross over that boundary in the terrible fear of what has yet to come. They couldn’t and wouldn’t ever be able to stand the fact that nightmares and dreams are always as real as the here and now. To them, lack of understanding meant losing the inkling of control they held carefully in their rugged hands. They feared weakness, those old folks. And that probably will be their downfall.

During some point in his journey, the boy bumped into another boy about his age. Twelve of thirteen he presumed, judging from the slight airiness of his voice. The two crashed and tumbled into opposite directions, with the non-blind boy picking up the other.

“I’m so sorry,” the blind boy said. “I can’t exactly see where I’m going so...”

“Well, I guess it’s alright. I mean, you’re blind and all. They call you blind for a reason.”

“Yeah. I guess so. Where are you headed, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“Somewhere far far far away from this nightmare.” the other boy gestured to the village on his right before remembering that his new found acquaintance had no sense of sight. “You?”

“Nightmare, huh?” the other was quite thankful that the blind boy didn’t question him about his ‘nightmare’. It was real, oh so very real, but no one would believe him anyway so he just fled. “Oh, in simple terms, I umm...I go to seek a Great Perhaps of some sort.”

There was a silence. A long one, at that. Before it was broken by a rambunctious laugh that originated from the boy the blind one ran into. The same-aged boy patted his blind acquaintance on the back, ruffling his dark hair a bit for fun.

“Okay. Well, since we’re both looking for sort of the same thing, I might as well just come with you. Whaddya say?”

The offer was all very sudden but the blind boy couldn’t help but agree.

“Great! I’m the village boy Daehyun. Jung Daehyun. And you are?”

“I’m the blind Youngjae. Nice to meet you.”

The two newly found friends smiled and shook hands and set off on their wonderful adventure to find their Great Perhaps.

Skipping the years in between, since nothing but numerously being chased out of villages and kicked away from famous land sites occurred during those times, the two friends finally settled in a small village isolated from a good portion of the world, so to speak.

In nineteen year old Daehyun’s point of view, they failed in finding their Great Perhaps. At some point, he even thought that the dream they were both chasing will forever be a dream. That they weren’t the reality they were looking or hoping for. Youngjae, however, would always disagree.

“Why would you disagree, Youngjae? In the six years that we’ve been looking for our Great Perhaps, not once have we found a place that came close to what we were looking for.” Daehyun would say, leaning on the younger’s shoulder for support. “I don’t know why but none of the places felt right. Maybe it’s just not out there.”

“What do you mean, Dae?”

“Well, you know, that feeling. There’s nothing remotely magical about the places we’ve been to. Jae, we’ve been to gigantic towers that looked like they touched the heavens, to beaches with powdery white sand and crystal clear cerulean waters, to emerald prairies that sprout hundreds of colorful flowers every year. And I know you can’t see them but-”

“It’s okay. I like it when you explain things. It’s like a dream, you know? And anyway, I’m a hundred percent sure that I’ve found my Great Perhaps.”

Then, for some odd reason, Daehyun would just shut up when he saw Youngjae smiling like that.

It was a peaceful smile, one that hid so many things, one that witnessed the beauties of the world. It was a smile that nineteen year old Daehyun was so lucky to see before, in a dream from so many years ago.

They would end up walking together like usual, holding hands the moment they stepped foot outside their small house. The place was nothing fancy, just a couple bricks and cement, but it was home nonetheless. They ambled on the beaten muddy paths, down the grassy hills and by the side of the lake nearby. By the time they would reach home again, their shirts would be soaked, their shoes worn and dirtied, and their hair ruffled from running around and dreaming.

Like I said in the beginning, there used to be stories of a boy that circulated entire villages. He was the blind boy who went to seek his Great Perhaps, in the hope of finding the reality of his dream. He believed in everything, that boy. In ghosts, sprites, water spirits, and griffins, all of those supposedly mythical beings. He believed in all things until they were disapproved, which they rarely were. So, in a sense, he believed in everything.

Now that I think about it, Youngjae probably was insane. Not that it mattered much. He was a good person. Bit on the naïve side when it came to some things, kind of a smart aleck at times, a bit blind to certain things, but a good person nonetheless. Apparently, his Great Perhaps came to him in a vivid dream. I asked him about it a couple times, but every time I did, he would smile at me, give me a kiss on the cheek and walk away. It was only on his deathbed did he ever tell me what his supposed ‘magnificent’ Great Perhaps was. You know, the one that came to him in a dream and all.

He told me the same thing he told me years ago.

“Daehyun, dreams are as real as reality. Nothing is to say that they aren’t.”

“But, Jae-”

“You know how I told you that my Great Perhaps was a dream, right Dae?”

“Yeah?”

“And you know how I told you I’ve already found it? And that I found it a long long time ago?”

“Mhm.”

He was inconcievably idiotic, at times. Probably the stupidest person I’ll ever have the chance to meet. Because, you see...

I was his Great Perhaps.

And now that I think about it, he is mine.

IDK. This. IDK. Um..
I hope you liked it? I KNOW IT'S LAME. XD
What can I do? I'm an ASIANATO (asian potato)
If THERE ARE TYPOS AND ERRORS I'M SO SORRY. 
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Love, Jelly <3    <(^o^)>