Year: 2011

Xiumin: 14

Luhan: 21

Grunting, I woke up feeling worse than I had the night before. It felt as if I hadn’t slept a wink, yet I had gotten at least eight hours of sleep. I went to sit up, stopping when I felt a creak in my back. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, propped up on my elbows, analyzing my surroundings. I had fallen asleep on the couch, explaining the pain in my back and the lack of deep sleep.

I slowly got up, cursing silently to myself as my back worked against me. I slowly twirled my arms, stretching out my shoulders first. I then did a few twists, turning my body side to side to loosen up.

“Old man,” I chuckled to myself, walking to the kitchen.

Opening the fridge, I searched for something to eat, wondering what would be good this morning. I grabbed the eggs and was going to begin cooking when I nearly dropped the carton.

“Xi-Xiumin?!” I gasped, placing the carton down so I didn’t drop it. “What are you doing?”

“What do you mean?” he yawned, rubbing his eyes with his little hands.

“You are still here. Why are you still here? Do you feel okay? Oh my god I’m so happy, baby.”

I scooped the child up in my arms and hugged him tightly against my chest. It was rare that he stayed with me for long, but I was especially glad that time was on our side this time. I didn’t want him to be running through time when he just went through such a tragic accident that made him this way. I wanted him to be safe with me and stay here for even a little while longer, until he felt comfortable.

“Luhan?” he whispered after a moment.

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Can you stop squeezing me so hard? I...I can’t really breathe,” he half gasped, wiggling from my arms.

I smiled inwardly, watching him wiggle off the feeling of being over-hugged. I went back to the stove, flicking on the burner, heating up a pan. Xiumin stood next to me and helped me begin to cook eggs and other things we decided would be good for breakfast. I talked to the young boy, asking him about his dreams and his goals.

He told me some things, but others, he kept private. It was only fair, however, that he kept things from me (even if I already knew the answer to some of the questions) since, afterall, we had just met on his watch. It was interesting seeing this side of him, being the one who knew what was going on, rather than being the one who is confused over the whole time traveling situation.

“So what do you want to do today my good sir?” I asked him after we had finished eating and I had cleaned the dishes.

“I’m not sure...what is there to do around here? I don’t know your area.”

“That’s right! So stupid,” I muttered, hitting my forehead for being a complete fool.

“I’m sorry,” he said in a small voice, looking down at the floor.

“No, no it’s my fault Xiu. I forgot. We could go to the cinema or the park or the arcade. Whatever you would normally do, I’m sure it is around here. If it isn’t, don’t worry. I’ll find one and drive you there.”

He thought for a moment, biting his pointer finger while pondering to himself. I waited, twiddling my thumbs, wondering what a fouteen year old could possibly want to do in this day and age. It had been awhile since I had been his age and, as far as I was concerned, I lived a fairly simple teenage life.

“The museum,” he finally replied, a smile spreading across his face.

“Like the art museum or the science museum?” I questioned, raising an eyebrow at the boy. It was a strange request.

“Science, of course.”

“Alright, we’ll go,” I shrugged, clapping a hand on his shoulder. “Let’s get dressed.”

~

We stood in the grand lobby just inside the massive science museum. Crowds of people rushed by us, varying from families to school tours, all bubbling with chatter and interest as their eyes scanned the mysteries of science in front of them.

I looked down at Xiumin and saw the same interest reflected in his large eyes. A smile was plastered on his face as he walked over to the space exploration exhibit area and began reading the signs of stars and the galaxy beyond.

The boy was silent as he moved through, taking in every aspect of the exhibit as I followed closely behind him. I dared not to speak, fearing I’d interrupt him and his curiosity. He was, after all, only a mere child to my current age, ready to soak up new information like a sponge. It was only after an hour that the silence between us was broken by him speaking up.

“It’s crazy,” he began, staring at a sign talking about the possibilities of other life in the galaxy. “There are things that are so insane that even scientists are stumped. They think that there is no possible way such a thing could exist, yet there is some sort of evidence that it could. I guess that is what this whole situation feels like.”

“What situation?” I pressed, urging the boy to continue.

“My situation. I should be dead.”

He paused for a long time, staring back at the exhibit, a blank expression on his face. I wanted to ask why he should be dead, but I couldn’t swallow the lump in my throat that formed at the thought of not having Xiumin in my life.

“I should be dead,” he whispered, restating his previous words. “We were supposed to be evacuating because there was a nuclear meltdown happening and the area I lived in was going to be affected. If I hadn’t forgotten my bag of belongings, if I hadn’t thought that those material items were so important, I wouldn’t be here. I would be with my parents in some safety camp, waiting for them to relocate us to a safe part of the country. I should be dead, Luhan, but instead, I’m the evidence of what could happen if someone survives such unmeasurable amounts of radiation.”

I watched the boy slowly turn, dragging his feet out of the current exhibit and onto the next. I couldn’t say I understood what he was going through today, or ever, but I tried to sympathize with him, tried to let him know that I felt for him. It was hard, though, trying to tell someone who should be dead that it’ll be okay. It would never be okay, at least not for Xiumin.

A/N: You guys wanted Xiu to stick around so he did! I'll try to update more often, but I'm running out of like inspiration and also time. I've been so busy with work and I start college next week ;;; Is there anything you guys would like to see/know about Xiumin? Sorry for such a crappy update /) . (\