Cool sterile air.

Incessant beeping.

Soft sheets and pillow.

This couldn’t be my attic.

Chanyeol tries to open his eyes and go look for someone to tell him what’s going on, but his eyelids just won’t cooperate.  He groans, this time out of frustration, and that’s when he hears the sound of rustling sheets from his side.  A weight is suddenly lifted off from the mattress as a hand runs through is hair in a familiar and comforting manner.

“Chanyeol?  You with me this time?”  A voice asks and Chanyeol sighs with relief.  Kris.

“Wh’r am I?”  Chanyeol asks, still trying to pry open his eyes.  His throat is sore and voice sounds raw, causing him to cough a little.

“Hospital.  Wait a sec.”  Kris says and the hand disappears.  When Chanyeol finally manages to open his eyes a little, he sees Kris handing him a cup.  The other brings it to his lips, and lets Chanyeol take a few sips of water before taking the cup away.  Inside the room it’s dark, so Chanyeol assumes that it’s already nighttime.

“What happened?”  Chanyeol asks once Kris’s facing him again.

“You got really sick.  You’ve been asleep for a while, you know.”  Kris says, looking like he’s about to cry.

Chanyeol tries to answer but ends up coughing instead.  Kris rubs soothing circles on his chest as he waits for the other’s coughing fit to pass.  “Easy there,” Kris says once Chanyeol’s regained control of his breathing, “you just got the tube out a couple of days ago so your throat must still be sore, and you got that thing in your nose, so.”

“Tube?”  Chanyeol asks, feeling the nasal cannula running from his nose, and Kris nods.  “How long?  In here, I mean, how long?”

Kris chokes back a sob before answering.  “Too long.”  And then lunges forward to hug Chanyeol tightly.  Chanyeol can feel Kris shaking, his tears soaking Chanyeol’s hospital gown, so he brings his hands up to return the embrace.

“I was so scared.”  Kris says between sobs.  “I thought we were too late.  You were just, you were in my arms and then you… you stopped breathing and then your heart stopped beating and I was so scared.”  Kris says, now crying openly.  “I thought I’d lost you.”

“But I’m here.”  Chanyeol replies, hugging the other tighter.  Kris lets go a little in order to look Chanyeol in the eye, and that’s when Chanyeol sees what Kris meant by too long.  The other’s hair is unkempt, with stray strands sticking out everywhere, has a few days’ worth of stubble, wearing clothing that don’t look like they’re his, and has dark circles under his eyes.

“Yeah, you’re here.”  Kris replies, smiling and wiping at his tears.

“You should get some rest, you look tired.”  Chanyeol says, frowning at Kris’s current appearance.

“Well, the past days had been rough.”  Kris replies with a little laugh.  “But I’m okay.  I look worse than I feel; maybe I do need a shower.”  He contemplates as he pushes Chanyeol to lie back on the bed.  “You, on the other hand, probably feel as awful as you look.”

“I look awful?”  Chanyeol jokingly says, a small smile gracing his features.  He can already feel the pull of sleep taking over.

Kris laughs as he pulls the blanket up to Chanyeol’s shoulders.  “Nah, I was just kidding.  Now, go to sleep.”

“Only if you promise to go to sleep, too.”  Chanyeol says before letting out a yawn.

“Promise.”  Kris replies, smoothing out Chanyeol’s hair as the other closes his eyes.

“Be here when I wake up?”  Chanyeol asks.

“Of course.”  Kris replies.  The last thing that Chanyeol feels before sleep pulls him under is the feel of Kris’s lips on his forehead.

~O~

“Kris?”

“Yes?”

“Why are you staring at me?”  Chanyeol asks before turning his head away from the TV and looking to the side, and sure enough, Kris is staring at him.

“Nothing.  Why do you ask?”  Kris replies with a smile.  Chanyeol huffs before yawning.

“You’re still sleepy.”  Kris muses, still smiling at Chanyeol.

“Don’t change the subject.”  Chanyeol says.  “Something’s bothering you.”

Kris gets up from his seat and pulls the chair closer to Chanyeol.  He sits down and stares at Chanyeol at eye level.  “Nope.  Nothing’s bothering me.”

“Jesus Christ!”  Chanyeol exclaims, frowning at Kris before once again letting out a yawn that causes Kris to laugh at him.  “Shut up.  Just tell me what’s up.”

“I told you, nothing!”  Kris says, and Chanyeol pouts at him.  Just then, the door to the room opens, revealing Tao and Yixing.

“Oh !”  Yixing says once seeing the two.  Tao freezes up once he sees the two, but immediately gives Kris a sly smile.

“We’ll just drop by later.”  Tao declares before dragging Yixing out of the room.  Kris returns his attention back to Chanyeol, but finds the other already asleep.  He lets out a little laugh before smiling fondly at the sleeping boy.

“Yeah, absolutely nothing.”

~O~

A cold and damp feeling against Chanyeol’s lips brings him back from the realms of sleep.  There’s a weight beside him on the mattress and voices all around him; very familiar voices.

“Jesus Christ!  Jinri, get down here!”  A voice says, from the foot of the bed.

“But his lips are dry; they must hurt.”  A voice, small and childish, from his left says.  When he opens his eyes, he sees a girl smiling at him, holding a damp washcloth.

“Hi!”  She says, before a slightly chubby but tall man escorts her from the bed and down to the ground.  When he looks around, Chanyeol sees the rest of SHINee all smiling at him.

“Hey guys.”  Chanyeol says as he tries to get up.  Minho is immediately by his right; propping up his pillows and helping him lean against them.  “Jonghyun, you okay?”  Chanyeol asks, a small and distant memory of a brown-haired guy falling in battle suddenly assaulting him.

Jonghyun looks at him like he has two heads.  “Yeah, I’m okay.  You on the other hand…”

“I’m fine.”  Chanyeol replies.

“Yeah right.”  Minho says from his right.  “By the way, that’s Kyuhyun, also known as Evil Kyu; he’s another one of us, Prof. Shim’s men.  The girl is Jinri.”

“Hi.”  Chanyeol says, smiling.  “You were there.  In the attic, I mean.  I think I heard you and Jonghyun talking to each other when I was sick.”

“Yeah.  I was there.”  Kyuhyun replies.  Then there’s a comfortable silence in which the only sound of the heart monitor can be heard.

“You guys look pretty tired.”  Chanyeol comments.

“You have no idea.”  Kibum says, but he’s smiling.

“It’s been a rough two weeks.”  Jonghyun muses, nodding his head.

“Two weeks?  No wonder you’re all tired.”  Chanyeol replies.

“I wasn’t talking about us.”  Jonghyun replies, looking straight at Chanyeol.  “I was talking about you guys in here.”

“What?”  Chanyeol asks, and then suddenly, realization dawns upon him.  “I’ve been… two weeks?  No way!”

“Yeah, sorry.”  Minhos says, putting a hand on Chanyeol’s shoulder.

“No wonder Kris’s acting weird.”  Chanyeol says, his whole body trembling.  Suddenly, a pair of small arms is hugging him, and soft hair touches his face.

“It’s okay.”  The girl, Jinri, says.  “You’re okay now and that’s all that matters.”  She holds him like that until Chanyeol calms down, and then she lets go and sits beside him.

“You should rest.”  Kyuhyun says, eyeing the machines around Chanyeol.  “The fact that those are still hooked up to you mean you’re not a hundred percent yet.”

“Besides, we just dropped by to see how you’re doing and to thank you personally.”  Kibum says.

“Thank me?  For what?”  Chanyeol asks, surprised.

“We’ll tell you some other time.”  Minho says before motioning for Jinri to help him.  “For now, you must rest so that you can ditch these noisy things.

“Does that mean that I’ll see you guys again?”  Chanyeol asks as Jinri gently pushes him back to lie down.

“Trust me, you will.”  Jonghyun says with a smile before looking at his brother.

“Just what is going on in the future?”  Chanyeol asks, frustrated.  Jinri just laughs and takes one if his hands before putting something in it and closing it.

“You’ll know soon enough.  You just have to be patient.”  She says.  Chanyeol looks at the thing in his hand and realizes that it’s a woven bracelet with lettered beads spelling out his name.

“Wow.  Thank you.”  He says, as Jinri helps him tie the knot that will secure the bracelet.  “But what is it for?”

“It’s a thank you gift.”  She replies.  “I thought it would be nice if you had it now than later, you know.”

“Thank you gift for what?”  Chanyeol asks.  Jinri just kisses him on the cheek before whispering, “For being the most awesome person in the world.”  They just smile at each other until Jonghyun announces that they have to leave.  They bid each other goodbye, SHINee members patting Chanyeol on the shoulder and Jinri kissing him on the cheek once again, before they all crowd into the bathroom.  Chanyeol hears some rustling and pained cries inside before Minho counts them off and the noise disappears.  He then eyes the bracelet, and for some reason, he feels a surge of pride.

~O~

“Do I really have to do this?”  Chanyeol asks Kris as the other helps him get on the wheelchair.

“Yes.”  Kris replies as he hands Chanyeol a sweater.  “Put that on.”

“I can walk, you know.”  Chanyeol replies after he puts on Kris’s sweater.

“Shut up and listen to the doctor.”  Kris says, as he turns his attention to Chanyeol’s doctor, Dr. Kwon.

“Okay.”  She says before looking Kris in the eyes.  “Chanyeol’s stubborn, so I’ll leave it up to you to make sure he gets rest okay?”  She asks and Kris nods, before looking at Chanyeol pointedly.  “Now, complete bed rest.”  Chanyeol groans in protest.  “Shut up.  Complete bed rest; make sure he gets a lot of fluids in him and no skipping meals.  Don’t forget to give him his meds and make sure that his surroundings are clean.  He’s still recuperating and is very vulnerable to all kinds of sickness.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he does all that.”  Kris says with a nod.

“Oh, and don’t forget the monthly check-ups.”  She says before turning to Chanyeol.  “We have to watch that heart of yours and make sure that there aren’t any complications with your second bout of rheumatic fever.  Did you really think that not telling anyone about your earlier episode of the fever when you were a kid is a justifiable action?”

“I just…”  Chanyeol starts to justify himself.

“Not open for discussion.”  Dr. Kwon replies.

 “Okay.”  Chanyeol replies, resigned.

“We better get going.  Siwon’s already waiting for us downstairs.”  Kris says.

“Okay.  Have a safe trip, then!”  Dr. Kwon says as she waves them off.  Kris wheels Chanyeol off his room to the elevator, bidding goodbye to the nurses and doctors that he has come to know in the hospital along the way.

“One month, huh.”  Chanyeol says when they’re already inside the elevator.  He feels Kris’ grip on the handlebars of the wheelchair tighten at the statement. 

“You sure took your time.”  Kris replies, voice clipped.

“But what happened to Yoochun?”  Chanyeol asks, voice small.  He feels a comforting hand on his shoulder and sees that Kris is now kneeling beside him.

“Let’s just say that Siwon and Luhan already took care of him.  He won’t bother you anymore, that’s for sure.”

“And the others in the house?  Taemin and Jongin?”

“I don’t know what happened to Taemin and Jongin, though the others were given to social services.”

“They were all underage?”  Chanyeol asks, thinking of Sehun and the bruises on his wrist.

“Not all of them, but the younger ones refuse to be separated from the older ones, so…”

“I always thought that the only way for me to get out of there was in a body bag.”  Chanyeol muses and Kris gasps.  “I’ve always wanted to get everyone out of there, especially when I see what the people outside do to them.”

“How come you never did what they did?”  Kris asks.

“I did at first.  But I always did fight back, and Yoochun resolved the issue by making me stay in the attic and leaving me to do all the chores in the house.”

“Just you?”

“You did say that I have an obscene amount of chores.”

“I’ve known Yoochun for quite some time.  I mean, just as the guy who owns the record shop down the corner, but I never thought that he also owned a few strip clubs.”  Kris says, frowning.  The elevator door opens and Kris wheels Chanyeol out to the front door where the car is waiting for them.  Luhan helps Kris get Chanyeol inside the car and after a while, they signal for Siwon to finally drive off.

“So, I’ve taken care of the arrangements in the house according to the doctor’s orders.”  Luhan says.  “Everything’s all set for Chanyeol’s arrival.”

“Kris, you don’t have to do this.”  Chanyeol says, frowning at Kris.

“And I told you that I want to.”  Kris replies.  “And besides, you don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“Baekhyun’s!”

“He’s working, Chanyeol.  He won’t be able to take care of you.  I’ll just end up going to his place every day to make sure you stay put.”

“Well, you have school too!”

“Chanyeol,” Kris says before pulling the boy to lean against his side, “school ended a week before you woke up.”

“Oh.”  Was the only thing Chanyeol could say.  “Will we be there soon?”

“Yeah.”  This time, it’s Siwon who replies.

“Sleep.  I’ll wake you up when we’re there.”  Kris says before Chanyeol closes his eyes, the soft sound of Kris humming lulling him to sleep.

~O~

Loud footsteps can be heard outside, but Chanyeol does not pay attention to anything else.  He continues to play the piano piece, even as Kris enters the room and shuts the door loudly. 

“Chanyeol!”  Kris shouts, Chanyeol stops playing and looks at Kris.  He then smiles sheepishly and scratches his head.

“Hello.”  He says with a small voice.

“What the hell are you doing?”  Kris says as he approaches Chanyeol.

“Playing the piano?”  Chanyeol replies just as Kris reaches him.  The other eyes him with dark eyes before his expression softens and he sits beside Chanyeol on the piano bench.

“The doctor said you have to be on bed rest.”  Kris says.

“Kris, you can’t expect me to just lie around and do nothing!”  Chanyeol exclaims.  “I was just playing the piano, after all.  You don’t need much effort to do that.”

“You should’ve told me.”  Kris says, putting a hand over Chanyeol’s.

“I know, sorry.”  Chanyeol says.  “I just wanted to get out of there for a while, it’s kind of suffocating.”

“It’s okay.”  Kris says, pulling Chanyeol against his side.  “You never told me you play the piano, though.”

“I think I can play almost all the instruments in this room.”  Chanyeol says, looking around.  Kris does too, before saying, “Wow.  That’s a lot.”

“My parents were both musicians, so.”  Chanyeol replies, shrugging.  “It all started when my grandma taught me how to play Chopsticks on her upright.  My mom got her old teacher to teach me the piano, then my dad bought me a guitar, then both my parents bought me a drum set, and then the rest was history.”

“What else do you play?”

“Bass and African drums.”  Chanyeol replies.  “Kris, can I ask you a question?”

“Shoot.”

“What happened at the party?”  Chanyeol asks and Kris suddenly stiffens.

“What do you mean?”

“You promised that you’d tell me what happens the next time we meet, but you never really did.”  Chanyeol says.  “Did you find someone?”

Kris laughs.  “Not really.”

“That’s too bad.”

“Well… not really.”  Kris replies.  “You see, I already knew who I wanted, but I had doubts that that person will say yes.”  He continues when he sees Chanyeol’s questioning look.

“Did she say yes?”

“Not yet.”  Kris says before someone knocks on the door.  Kris excuses himself to answer it, and Chanyeol is left playing with his socked feet.  “I mean,” Kris continues and Chanyeol realizes that Luhan has entered and is handing Kris a paper bag, “I haven’t asked him yet.”  Kris says before taking out a pair of white rubber shoes from the bag.

Chanyeol’s heart skips a beat. 

“I was about to, you know.  That’s why I left him a note in the book that he was reading; unfortunately, he couldn’t come, or so I thought.”  Kris says as he gets down on one knee in front of Chanyeol.  “I just didn’t recognize him for some reason; I always thought it was because of the Roy Rogers, which is just weird because it’s not even an alcoholic drink, and because he had to get home by midnight.”

“He did manage to leave his sneakers and book behind, though.”  Kris continues and Luhan hands Chanyeol his book, with the note written on neon green paper on top.  “I wasn’t sure at first,” Kris says as puts Chanyeol’s right foot on his bent knee, “but then I saw the note.  That’s when I knew that couch guy was really him.”  Kris laughs.  “It’s kind of like Cinderella, except I was supposed to send out people to look for him instead of, you know, searching for him myself and finding him deathly sick with rheumatic fever in a pimp’s attic.”

“So I thought, let’s just forget all the unnecessary things that happened and move on.  So I brought him home from the hospital and was finally going to ask him when he disappears from his room.  I panic, and tell every person that I can find to go look for him.  But I end up finding him in the music room myself, playing a beautiful sounding piano piece, which I’m sure I won’t be able to pronounce the name of properly.”  Kris finishes and Chanyeol laughs.  Kris then takes the right shoe and holds it out to Chanyeol.

“So Park Chanyeol, will this shoe fit?”  He asks with a smile that sends Chanyeol’s heart fluttering in a good way.  Chanyeol takes the shoe to put it on his right foot, but he hasn’t even put his entire foot in the shoe when Kris pulls him by the collar and kisses his on the lips.  Chanyeol immediately returns the kiss, putting his arms around Kris’s neck, leaving the shoe forgotten.

They hear a door open and close; Luhan has left the room.  Outside, they hear a shout of, “Siwon!  You owe me 2000 Won!”  They part for air and Chanyeol hides his face on the crook of Kris’s neck, inhaling the other’s scent.  Kris, while running a hand through Chanyeol’s hair and at the same time caressing his nape, whispers, “You okay?”

“Yeah.”  Chanyeol replies.  “Just, you know…”

“Happy, yeah.”  Kris replies.

“Is Luhan really your lawyer?”  Chanyeol asks, remembering what they heard after Luhan got out of the room.  Kris laughs the says, “Trust me, I question his actions sometimes, too.”  They stay like that for a while until Chanyeol realizes that he’s forgotten to put on the shoes.  So, he breaks away from Kris’s embrace and puts on the shoe.

“Chanyeol?”  Kris asks as Chanyeol ties the laces of the first shoe. 

“Hm?”  Chanyeol replies.  Kris doesn’t answer at first, and that prompts him to look up.  Kris is staring at him, as if it’s the first time he’s seen Chanyeol.

“Kris?”  Chanyeol asks.

“Marry me?”  Kris asks in return.  Chanyeol is stunned at first; he couldn’t speak, couldn’t think, and couldn’t breathe.  Then, all the emotions come rushing in.  He cries, feels the tears running down his cheeks, but because he’s happy—extremely happy.  He pulls Kris closer, putting his forehead against the other’s, smiling and crying at the same time.

“Yes!  I’ll marry you!”  Chanyeol says before he kisses Kris once again.

“To think that I almost didn’t have this.”  Kris says as he Chanyeol’s cheek with his thumb after they part.

“Almost.”  Chanyeol says, as Kris now wipes away his tears.  “I have to finish putting on the shoes.  I left my slippers in my room.”

“Not gonna be your room anymore since you’re going to be staying in mine.”  Kris says as he stands up, pulling Chanyeol up with him.  “Put your shoes on later.”

“Why?”  Chanyeol asks, bending to get the other shoe from the floor.

“Play something for me?”  Kris answers, gesturing towards the piano.

But Chanyeol was already sitting on the floor, putting on the other shoe.

~O~

“Still on bed rest?”  A voice says from the foot of Chanyeol’s bed.  He puts down The Neverending Story and sees Jonghyun standing by his feet.

“Yeah.”  Chanyeol replies with a smile.  “I think it’s already way overdue, though.”

“I would’ve done the same thing, considering what happened.”  Jonghyun says as he approaches Chanyeol.  “And besides, it’s pretty clear that you still need to rest.”  He finishes, looking pointedly at Chanyeol’s still-tired appearance.

“I slept late last night.”  Chanyeol replies.  “I was reading.”

“Isn’t this Kris’s room?”  Jonghyun asks, looking around.

“Yeah.”  Chanyeol says before closing the book and smiling sheepishly.  “I read when he was sleeping.  I used a flashlight.”

“Jesus Christ!  Future Kris’s going to hear about this!”  Jonghyun says jokingly and they both laugh.  “Seriously, though.  You must rest.  No more reading while Kris is asleep, okay?” 

“Okay.”  Chanyeol replies.  “Go sit down.”  He says and Jonghyun sits by Chanyeol’s knee on the bed.

“How are you doing?”  Jonghyun asks.  Chanyeol notices that he looks better and sounds happier.

“I’m fine.  Better.”  Chanyeol replies.  “You look better, too.  Things must be going great for you guys.”

“Yeah, things are going great for us.”  Jonghyun replies before ruffling Chanyeol’s hair.  “Bed hair, so don’t complain.  Also, you’re gaining back your weight.”

“Yeah well, I really would since there are at least six people trying to shove food down my throat.”  Chanyeol replies.

“You know where Kris is?”  Jonghyun asks.

“Out with Tao, Yixing, and Jongdae.”  Chanyeol replies, suddenly smiling.  “Things are really back to normal, you know.  Tao said that when I was in the hospital, Kris wouldn’t leave except for school and for a shower back home; which is totally funny considering its Kris we’re talking about.  And when I got here, he’s been watching me all day every day so it’s really nice that we finally managed to convince him to go out and have fun.”

“But I bet he won’t be able to help it and come rushing back here as soon as they’re done.”  Jonghyun says, laughing.  This time, Chanyeol notices his clothes.  He pointedly stares at the blue button down, slacks, and leather shoes

“Jonghyun, what’s going on?”  Chanyeol asks, perplexed.

“I’m going back to school.”  Jonghyun replies with a really bright smile.  “In fact, all of SHINee is!”

“Really?!  Congratulations!”  Chanyeol replies.

“Thanks, and congratulations to you too.”  Jonghyun replies and Chanyeol looks at him curiously.  “What?  You think we don’t know about Kris’ marriage proposal and your answer?”

“Oh, of course, because you’re awesome.”  Chanyeol replies and Jonghyun grins.

“You’re learning.”

“The future must be better for you guys, huh.”

“Yeah.  That’s why I’ve come to thank you once again, and explain everything to you.  I think we owe you that much.”  Jonghyun says.

“Okay.  Go on.”  Chanyeol says, urging Jonghyun.

“We actually came from Seoul, in the year 3000.  During that time, the Super Junior Group of Companies and its leader, Heechul, control the entirety of Korea.  We, the Shining SHINee with Prof. Shim, Evil Kyu, and Jinri are outlaws who are fighting against them.  The Korea that we came to know is very different from the Korea of today; there’s no life, it’s just a large expanse of desert, somewhat like Las Vegas.

But the Super Junior Group of Companies wasn’t always headed by Heechul, and it wasn’t always an aimless corporation that does nothing but hurt the whole of Korea.  It wasn’t even named Super Junior Group of Companies before!  What we know as the Super Junior Group of Companies started out as a small string of establishments that grew to be a powerful business—an empire.”

“Wait, are you telling me…?”  Chanyeol says, confused and surprised.

“Yes.  Super Junior Group of Companies or what the empire that will grow to be Super Junior Group of Companies was once owned by Mr. Wu, Kris’s father.”  Jonghyun replies.

A vision of a face of a man seen through a window of a car assaults Chanyeol, and he stares out the bedroom window for a moment to clear his head.  Could it be…?

“Chanyeol, you still with me?”  Jonghyun asks.

“Uh yeah.”  Chanyeol says, looking back at the brown-haired man.  “Please continue.”

“When he died, the empire went to Mr. Wu’s other relatives and they fought over it until the entire family disintegrated, the power of greed much more powerful than blood. That’s when Heechul stepped in—Heechul was a friend of Kris’ father and he’s always had his eyes on the empire.  He knows his way when it comes to business and is charming to boot; the Wu family didn’t stand a chance against him.  So he got the empire and turned it to the Super Junior Group of Companies.  The company’s influence just kept on expanding and expanding, until it had all of Korea under its control.”

“Wait, how come Kris didn’t get the empire?”  Chanyeol asks.  Jonghyun sighs before answering the question.

“When Prof. Shim told us that he found out a way to go back in time and reverse this all, we immediately said we’d do it.  That’s when he explained everything to us; how the Super Junior Group of Companies came to be, how Heechul got it, pretty much what I just told you.  But when we asked what we needed to do here to reverse it, he gave two names: Kris Wu and Park Chanyeol.”

“But what does this have to do with me?”  Chanyeol asks.

“When we went here, it’s with two things: the information about your friendship with Kris given to us by Prof. Shim and the impression that we had to make sure that you got to the party so that he’ll choose you.”

“Which you did.”  Chanyeol says, confused. 

“That’s where we were wrong.  We didn’t come back so that we can get you to the party so that Kris will choose you, because Kris already chose you even before the party.  It wasn’t about you snagging Kris, because you already had Kris right from the moment you two met in the store.  You see, we weren’t sent back in time for Kris; we were sent back for you.”

“For me?”  Chanyeol asks, even more confused.

“Yes, for you.”  Jonghyun said, looking at Chanyeol.  “Kris never married, Chanyeol.  Not because he didn’t want to or because the world was against the two of you being together, but because he was too late.”

“What…?”

“You died, Chanyeol.”  Jonghyun says and Chanyeol just stares at him, shocked.  “You died in that attic because of rheumatic fever.”

“But I died this time too, didn’t I?”  Chanyeol says, trying to convince himself that what he’s hearing is wrong.  “Kris said that my heart stopped beating.  That’s technically death, right?”

“Yes, it is.  But there’s a difference in the time frame.”  Jonghyun says, running a palm over his face.  “In the unchanged past, Kris and the others who came for you got lost because Baekhyun couldn’t remember the right address.  By the time they got to you, you were already dead for an hour and it was already too late.”

“No way.”  Chanyeol says, looking down at his trembling hands.  I was supposed to die?

“I know it’s a lot to take in…” Jonghyun says, putting a comforting hand over Chanyeol’s trembling ones.

“Then how come I’m alive?”  Chanyeol asks with a shaky voice.

“Because we interfered.”  Jonghyun replies and Chanyeol looks up.  Jonghyun can see the tears forming at the other’s eyes.  “We told Jinki to look for your friends on the road where they’ll take the wrong turn and stop them there to give them the right address and to tell them to hurry.  By doing that, they never got lost and they got to you in time.”

“Before I… let go, I heard the sound of feet coming upstairs.”  Chanyeol says.

“Paramedics.”  Jonghyun says before laughing softly.  “It’s just funny that all this time, we thought that we came back here to help you dress up and stuff, when the only thing we had to do was to keep you safe and make sure your friends don’t get lost.”

“What happened to Kris in the unchanged past?”  Chanyeol asks.

“He was devastated by your death.  He just… let go of everything, I guess.  After he finished college, he moved to Europe to study more and left the empire to his other relatives.  Luhan and Siwon went with him and tried to get him to marry, but they eventually gave up and stayed to make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.  He was so depressed and he never got over your death, it was like he died with you.”

“It still doesn’t explain why you’re thanking me.”  Chanyeol says, frowning.  “I mean, I didn’t save myself.  Kris and you guys did.”

“You could’ve easily driven to the wrong direction.  Or you could’ve never listened to Kris’s father and never gotten into the Trans Am at all.”  Jonghyun says with a smile.  Chanyeol just stares at him with his jaw hanging.

“It was real!”  Chanyeol asks.  “I thought it was just a dream.”

“I don’t really know about that one.  I’ve never really died before.”  Jonghyun muses.  “But still, it was all up to you.  So we’re thanking you because you chose to stay, because you never let go.”

“Well, you’re welcome.”  Chanyeol says, smiling.  “But I think that between death and Kris, my choice would be pretty clear.”

Jonghyun laughs.  “You saw Heechul in you dream, didn’t you?”

“Is he the guy with a shoulder-length brown hair?”  Chanyeol asks and Jonghyun nods.  “Yeah, I did.  How do you know this stuff, anyway?  Do you guys have abilities like that?”

“Chanyeol, we time travel, we don’t read minds.”  Jonghyun replies.  “Surely, time traveling has its perks.”

“Huh?  Wait… I told you.”  Chanyeol says, looking at Jonghyun in awe.  “I told you about my dream in the future!”

“Yeah, you still can’t remember everything right now, but it’ll slowly come back.  And then, you’ll tell us in the future.”

“Then we’ll become friends?”  Chanyeol asks.

“Aren’t we friends yet?”  Jonghyun asks, to which Chanyeol answers with a huge smile.  “You’re still wearing the bracelet.”  Jonghyun then says, upon seeing the gift from Jinri.

“Yeah.”  Chanyeol says, smiling down at the letters of his name.

“Don’t lose it.”

“Sure.  But why?  Is it going to be important in the future?”  Chanyeol asks.

“Nah.  I mean, isn’t it awesome that you have something from the future?  Even I still can’t believe that we can time travel, you know.”  Jonghyun says.  “Oh, before I forget.”  He says, taking out a box by the foot of the bed.  “We thought we’d give this to you.”  He says as he hands it to Chanyeol.

Chanyeol opens the box, and sees a walkie-talkie kind of thing inside.  “Jonghyun!  This is… wow.”  Chanyeol says as he picks it up.

“We just thought… you know, if ever you need something or if you just want to talk.”  Jonghyun says with a smile.  “Everything’s inside.  Manual, charger, and extra batteries.”

“Thanks.  Now I have two things from the future!”  Chanyeol says gleefully before turning serious.  “Is everything going to be okay?  I mean, is everything okay with Kris and me and everyone else?”

Jonghyun puts a hand on Chanyeol’s shoulder.  “Everything’s okay.  Sure, there are some small bumps along the way, but they’re nothing that Siwon or Luhan or both can’t take care of.”  Chanyeol laughs.  “Just don’t give up or lose hope, Chanyeol.  Believe me, from now on, everything’s going to be perfect.”

And Chanyeol believes him.

They hear the sound of a car horn from outside.

“Well, I have to go.  It looks like your prince is here.”  Jonghyun says.

Chanyeol immediately turns red.  “Wow… uhm… I don’t know what to say.”

Jonghyun laughs, loud and hearty.  “Well, you’ll have to get used to worse teasing in the future.”

“Seriously?!”

“Let’s just say that Baekhyun, Joonmyeon, and Minseok aren’t really forgiving when it comes to teasing you about your love life.”

“I should’ve known.”

“And that their teasing is greatly infectious and we have caught the bug.”

“Oh come on!”  Chanyeol says, his arms flailing around.  Jonghyun once again laughs before looking at him fondly.

“Well, until we meet again, Chanyeol.”  He finally says.

“Until we meet again.”  Chanyeol says.  “Though, I hope it’s not that far into the future.  And I hope that you guys will remember me once we do.”

“You just have to be patient. And trust me, we’ll remember you.”  Jonghyun says.

“I’ll be expecting that.   Take care!”  Chanyeol says just as Jonghyun takes out his walkie-talkie kind of thing.

“You too, take care.  Rest, okay?  See you soon!”  Jonghyun says before pushing a button and disappearing.  The door opens just as Jonghyun disappears, revealing a smiling Kris.

“Hello!”  Kris says before dropping his bags and rushing to the bed.  He doesn’t even bother to remove his sneakers, just climbs onto the bed and flops down beside Chanyeol.  “I missed you.”  He then says before kissing Chanyeol.

“Kris, your shoes.”  Chanyeol says as soon as Kris stops kissing him.  “You’ll get dirt on the sheets.”

Kris looks at the dirt-stained sheets before looking back at Chanyeol.  “Don’t worry about it; leave it be.  We’ll just change them later.”

“Wow.  Talk about not worrying at all.”  Chanyeol says.  “You’re too happy; did something happen?”

“Nah, I just really missed you.”  Kris replies.

“You weren’t even gone for a day!”  Chanyeol replies.  Kris just laughs and buries his face on Chanyeol’s shoulder.  “Why do you have so many things with you, anyway?  When you left you only had your wallet and phone with you, I think.”

“Oh, I bought some stuff for you.  Clothes, mostly, but there are other stuff too.”  Kris replies and Chanyeol looks as if he’s about to protest.  “I can’t take Luhan’s complaints anymore, you know?  About how he’s going to turn you over to the fashion police?  And I don’t really think you’re getting out of this house anytime soon so I took it upon myself to buy some stuff.”

“Wow… I don’t… thanks.”  Chanyeol says, at a loss for words.

“Just accept it, okay?  And besides, even if I didn’t do it now, Baekhyun and others would’ve dragged me with them to go look for clothes for you.”  Kris replies.  “Speaking of which, Minseok wanted me to tell you that he’s managing the record store now, and the three of them are planning on opening a coffee shop and would you want to help them with it?”

“Oh sure!”  Chanyeol replies.  “Minseok’s always loved coffee, and I guess he’s the one who turned everyone who works in the record store into caffeine addicts.”

“Hm… I can definitely see an investment there, can’t you?”  Kris says, getting out of the bed and pulling Chanyeol with him.

“Yeah, I can.”  Chanyeol replies.  “Wait, you’re actually letting me out of bed?”

“Just this once.  But after you fit all of those clothes I bought, you’re going straight back to bed.  Got it?”  Kris says, handing a white button down to Chanyeol.

“Yessir.”  Chanyeol replies, taking the button down.  Somewhere in his mind, Chanyeol can remember a time when he was sitting inside a car in the middle of a desert, asking someone where the car would take him.  He vaguely remembers a man’s face coming to view through the car’s window and replying, “Home.”

And now, as he lets Kris dress him of his new clothes, Chanyeol can’t help but agree with what the man said.  With a smile, he takes Kris’s hands and pulls him in for a kiss, all the while thinking,

“And we will live happily ever after.”