When Chanyeol wakes up, it’s like a switch had been made.

The last time he was awake, everything was clear, cool, and real.  Now, everything is blurry, hot (or cold or hot… he’s not really sure anymore), and just wrong.  It was like the world is upside down, preventing him from comprehending anything.

Then there’s the fluttering in his chest.  Like there are birds inside him, which just freaks him out.  He can’t get up and make a run for it (his elbows and knees hurt, and just won’t support his plans) so he just gives up and goes back to sleep.

~O~

A knock on the door startles Kris from his reverie, causing him to jump slightly and drop the book that he’s reading.

“Kris?  It’s me, Siwon.  I got something for you.”  The voice from the other side of the door says, and Kris gets off his bed and goes to open the door.

Siwon, a muscular man with defined features, comes to view once he opens the door.  Kris lets him in and looks at Siwon questioningly.  “So, the crew is done cleaning the area where the party was held two nights ago.”  Siwon announces after some time.

“Wow.  Congratulations to them.  I thought they wouldn’t be able to do it.”  Kris replies, thinking of all the trash (both non-biodegradable and biodegradable) that was left in the area.

“Yeah, and Luhan found some stuff for you.”  Siwon says, handing Kris a book and a pair of shoes.  “We remembered the story that you told us on the way home; the one about the boy that you talked to on the couch?”

Kris nods.  “I thought I just imagined it.  I must’ve been drunk.”  He muses, thinking back to what he actually drank.

“Well, you weren’t imagining anything.”  Siwon says, pointing to the items.  “The cleaning crew told us that they found those on the very couch that you told us about.  He’s real, Kris, you didn’t just imagine him.”

Kris just stares at Siwon in shock.  He then very carefully looks at both items, especially the book.  “I think I’ve seen this before.”  He then says, eyeing the title.

“Really?”  Siwon replies.  “Oh!  Luhan was asking if he should start searching for this guy.”  He finishes with a knowing look and Kris promptly blushes.

“I guess so?”  Kris replies, unsure.  “Just.  I need some time to think.”

“Okay. We’re just outside if you need us.”  Siwon says, turning around to leave. 

“Wait!”  Kris says, and Siwon faces him again.  “Was it… was I really that obvious?”

“About invisible man?”  Siwon asks and Kris nods.  “Yeah.  Very.  Anyway, I’ll go back to Luhan and tell him of this new development.”  He finishes and approaches the door, but turns around before opening it.  “Just holler if you need us.”  He says, and then exits the room.

Kris goes back to the bed, staring at the book.  He then flips through the pages, until his eyes land on something green stuck in between.  He takes it out, and realizes that it’s a neon green note with his handwriting on it, declaring the place and time of the party.  He then looks at the shoes, then at the book, then at the note, then back at the book, and then… click.

“Holy !”  He shouts, before throwing the book back on the bed and running out of his room.  “Luhan!  Siwon!  I need to talk to you NOW!”

~O~

The next time Chanyeol wakes up, it’s to the feeling of something tight in his chest.  Maybe Minho’s playing a trick on him—tying knots in his chest using his magic mic, maybe?  Or maybe the birds are the ones tying the knots?  He whimpers, tries to soothe out the feeling by putting a hand on his chest, but nothing happens.

And then the fluttering feeling is back, stronger than before, and Chanyeol only has a split-second to softly groan before everything fades to black.

~O~

Joonmyeon sighs as he puts down his phone after another attempt to call their missing friend.

“Still nothing?”  A small voice behind him asks, and he turns around to see Baekhyun standing by the staff room doorway.

“Sorry.”  Joonmyeon replies and Baekhyun immediately bursts into tears.  Joonmyeon immediately tries to calm down his friend, and trying not to cry also.

“It’s been days, Joonmyeon.  Who knows what’s going on?!”  Baekhyun says, bawling like a kid. 

“Maybe he’s just at home, resting.”  Their friend, Minseok, says from the doorway.

“He always calls when he can’t work.  He would’ve called.”  Baekhyun replies.  “I’m telling you, something’s happened.”

“In that case, we’ll have to try harder to find him.”  Joonmyeon says just as the door of the shop opens.  Minseok goes back to the front to entertain whoever entered, but returns after a couple of seconds.

“You guys have to check this out!”  He says, prompting the two other boys to follow him quickly.  When they arrive, it’s to the sight of three men: one muscular and handsome, one blonde and wearing a suit, and the last a boy wearing a white button-down and is looking at them frantically.

“Kris?”  Baekhyun asks.  “What’s going on?”

“Where’s Chanyeol?”  Kris asks in return.

“That’s the problem, we haven’t seen or heard from him for days now.”  Baekhyun replies with a sob.

“We have to find him, I really need to talk to him.”  Kris says.

“Yeah, that’s what we’ve been trying to do lately.”  Minseok says, running a hand over his face.  “Zilch.”

“.”  Kris curses.  “Now what do we do?”

“I already have some friends looking for him.”  The handsome man says.  Then, something strikes Kris.

“Baekhyun, do you know what Yoochun’s address is?”  He asks.

“I think so.”  Baekhyun replies, scanning his memory.  “I think it’s just quite near.  Do you think he’s there?”

“I think so.  The last I’ve heard of him was during the party, when he scrambled off to leave before midnight.”  Kris replies.

“Chanyeol was at the party?”  Joonmyeon asks with surprise evident in his voice.

“How come you didn’t notice him?”  Minseok asks.

“I really don’t know; I must’ve been drunk… though I’m pretty sure the only thing in my system during that time was a glass of Roy Rogers.”  Kris says, unsure.

“I guess we better get doing then.”  Minseok says before they close down the shop.

~O~

This time, when Chanyeol wakes up, it’s to the feel of a cool hand on his forehead.

There are also voices, urgent voices, which are seemingly shouting worried statements to each other.  But everything sounds loud to Chanyeol, so they might be whispering for all he knows.

“!  !  I think we made a mistake!”  Someone screams, and the feel of cool skin disappears.

“What do you mean we made a mistake?”  Another voice screams.  “Should we call Key?”

“No, not yet.  I think it’s still reversible.”  The other voice says.

“Reversible!  You’ve got to be kidding me!”  A scoff.  “We can’t keep going back!  This is going to mess everything up!  Once is already enough!  Besides, what are you going to do?  Stop him from going to the party and stay indoors so that he won’t catch Mr. Bad Bug?”

“You don’t understand!”  The other exclaims, frustration in his voice.  “It’s not about him getting Wu, it’s about him!”

“What the hell do you mean it’s about him?!”  The other person shouts, voice loud near Chanyeol’s ear, causing the boy to whimper slightly.

“Evil Kyu!  Lower your voice!”  The other voice says.  “You’re right, once is enough.”  The feel of cool skin is back on his forehead once again.  “It’s okay, Chanyeol, it’s okay; you’re going to be okay.  It’s not yet too late, Evil Kyu; we can still do something.”

Suddenly, Chanyeol feels something wet dribble from his nose.

“!”  A soft and smooth material wipes the liquid, but it doesn’t stop running down.  “Call Jinki, we need his help!”

“O-okay.  How?”  The other voice asks.  Chanyeol hears the sound of some buttons being pressed.

“He’s on speed dial 1.”  The first voice replies.  Chanyeol begins to cough and gasp for air.  “Just do it, NOW!”

~O~

“Baekhyun, are you sure this is the way?”  Siwon asks, driving through nighttime Las Vegas.

“This is the road we took, I remember.”  Baekhyun replies.

“Just… concentrate, okay?  Try to remember as much.”  Luhan says from his seat beside Siwon.  All of a sudden, the car screeches to a halt.

“Are you trying to get us killed?!”  Minseok exclaims.

“What the hell…”  Siwon says instead, staring at the windshield.  Outside is a man with brown hair.  From where he’s sitting Luhan can see that he’s holding a microphone, and that he looks like he isn’t a bit scared of what he just did at all.  Joonmyeon immediately gets out of the car despite the others’ protests.

“Is he crazy?!”  Kris asks, talking about the man who Joonmyeon is currently screaming at.  “Is he trying to get us killed?!  Is he trying to get himself killed?!”  Outside, Joonmyeon has stopped screaming at the man and is now staring at him like he’s some alien.

“What’s going on?”  Baekhyun asks.  Before anyone could answer, Joonmyeon comes running back to the car as the man goes off to another direction.

“Drive.  We’re going to the right street.”  Joonmyeon seriously says.

“Joonmyeon, what happened there?”  Minseok asks, placing a comforting hand on Joonmyeon’s shaking arm.  Joonmyeon then takes out a piece of paper and hands it to Luhan.

“Hey, this is…”  Luhan begins.

“Yoochun’s address.”  Baekhyun finishes.  “, I was wrong with the next few turns.”

“Who was he?”  Kris asks.

“He didn’t say.”  Joonmyeon replies shakily.

“Did he tell you anything else?” 

“Yeah.”  Joonmyeon replies and then everyone quiets down to listen.  “He told me that we should hurry, before it’s too late.”

~O~

A drop of something pulls Chanyeol back to consciousness.  He feels arms holding him up, securing his head against someone’s chest, and fingers gently brushing hair from his face.

That, and the feeling of an elephant sitting on his chest.  He gasps for air, and feels the tears forming when he couldn’t pull in enough.

“Chanyeol?  Come on, Yeol, answer me.  Open your eyes for me.”  A voice says, stifling a sob.

“Kr’s?”  Chanyeol asks, out of breath.

“Yes, it’s me.”  The voice replies.  A cool hand is placed on Chanyeol’s forehead.  “You’ve got quite a temperature.”

“Birds.”  Chanyeol replies, gasping.

“Birds?  Where?”  Kris asks.

“Inside.”  Chanyeol replies, as he feels himself slipping away.

“What?”  Kris replies.  “Luhan, I think he’s delirious.”

“I think I know what he’s talking about.”  Another voice says before Chanyeol feels fingers on his neck.  “.”  The voice says.  The fingers disappear and are replaced by a hand on his chest.

“Nooo, gerroff.”  Chanyeol protests, rolling his head aimlessly.

“It’s his heart, it’s palpitating.”  The other voice replies.  “Baekhyun!  Call an ambulance!”

“Got it!”  Chanyeol hears Baekhyun’s voice from a distance.  He coughs weakly, feeling himself drift away once again.

“Chanyeol, stay with me.”  Kris says as more drops fall on Chanyeol’s face.  “Please, stay with me.”

Chanyeol tries to reply, but he finds out that he can’t speak.  He settles for weakly grasping Kris’s hand instead.

“See?  I’m here.”  Kris says, voice shaking, pleading.  “I’m not going anywhere, so don’t leave me.  Please.”

Chanyeol feels the tears make their way down his cheeks as he continues to gasp for air and shiver because of the cold.  “.  Luhan, hand me that blanket.”  Kris says, and then after a short while a blanket is strewn over Chanyeol’s body.  But despite this, Chanyeol feels his shivering worsen. 

“Sssh… it’s okay, it’s going to be okay.  Just don’t go anywhere, okay?”  Kris says as he wipes Chanyeol’s tears.  Chanyeol, finding his energy to be suddenly gone, loosens his grip on Kris’s hand and feels his head fall limply against Kris’s chest, unable to support it.

“NO!  No no no no no…”  Kris says, gripping Chanyeol’s hand tighter.  “Where the hell are the medics?”

“Baekhyun’s already fetching them downstairs.”  The other voice says.

Chanyeol gasps, feeling the blackness and cold takeover, causing his body to grow limp.  The fluttering feeling is back at its strongest, and Chanyeol feels so helpless that he can’t stop it.

“No, you are not going anywhere.  You hear me?”  Kris says, raindrops falling on Chanyeol’s face.  “You are not going anywhere, Park Chanyeol!”

Chanyeol hears the sound of footsteps making their way to the attic, feels the vibration of running footsteps against his body, and hears urgent voices shouting.

He lets go of Kris’s hand as the rest of his body goes limp.

The fluttering stops.

~O~

Chanyeol finds himself on a road alongside a desert.  Unsure of where to go, he starts walking under the blazing sun, but he doesn’t feel hot; he doesn’t even feel anything, he realizes.  He continues walking, until he sees a brown-haired man wearing a blue leather jacket fighting a pale, brown-haired man wearing a gray coat.  Both are pointing mics and shooting at each other.

“I didn’t mean for it to be this way.”  A voice behind him says, and he turns around to see a man in front of him.  “When I wrote that will, I was only thinking of what’s best for him.”

“I’m sorry?”  Chanyeol asks.  In the background, he can hear the distant sound of the battle that’s going on.

“I didn’t think that things would end up like this.  That he’d give up and just not care.”  The man says, sighing.

“I’m sorry but who are you?”  Chanyeol asks.  The man eyes him curiously before replying,

“I’m Kris’s dad.”

“Kris?  Who’s Kris?”  Chanyeol asks, now looking curiously at the man.

“Ah, of course.”  The man replies, stepping closer to Chanyeol and smiling fondly at him.  “You leave everything behind when she takes you away, am I right?”

Before Chanyeol could reply, they hear the roar of an engine and they both turn to look, only to see a white 1979 Trans Am Bandit a few paces from where there are.  Chanyeol looks back at the man before him and a thought suddenly enters his mind.

“I’m not supposed to be here, am I?”  Chanyeol asks.  The man shakes his head before digging through his pockets and taking out a set of car keys for Chanyeol to take.

“Go.  Get in the Trans Am and go.”  The man says, taking Chanyeol’s open hand and putting the keys in it before closing it.

“Where should I go?”  Chanyeol asks.  The man doesn’t answer; instead, he makes his way to the car, beckoning Chanyeol to follow.  When they reach the car, the man helps Chanyeol get into the driver seat and put the keys into the ignition.  The car starts with a roar and Chanyeol eyes the gas gauge—empty.

“You don’t have to worry about that, the car will take you to where you have to go.”  The man replies.

“But where will it take me?”  Chanyeol asks.  The man, again, doesn’t answer; instead, he looks ahead at the battle taking place.  Chanyeol follows suit, just in time to see the brown-haired man fall and the pale man to look at Chanyeol’s companion.  Chanyeol focuses his attention back to the man he’s with, and sees him eyeing the pale man with determination.

With this, Chanyeol revs up the car’s engine and prepares to go, but the man suddenly focuses his attention back to him.  He eyes the youngster in the car with pure care and compassion, as if he’s family.  He puts a comforting hand on Chanyeol’s shoulder before saying,

“Home.”

And then he lets go and steps back, and watches as Chanyeol drives to where his car will take him.