The hallway was white and empty and long, and Myungsoo could feel his eyebrows furrowing more and more with each step he took. He didn't  know where he was or where he was going, and he certainly didn't know how long he had been walking. It felt like he had been walking for hours, days, years even. Or maybe it had only been a few minutes.

Pausing, Myungsoo glanced warily over his shoulder. He saw a long, white hallway, a perfect reflection of what was before him. It didn't feel like he had moved at all, and with a groan he turned forward once again.

Myungsoo froze when he saw a figure that had not been there before, and he felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise up in alarm. The figure was standing with his back to him, but Myungsoo felt himself relax when he recognized the familiar posture.

"Hey, Yeol!" Myungsoo called, frowning when his best friend gave him no reaction. Myungsoo started walking faster towards the figure, his voice rising. "Sungyeol!"

The figure began to turn and Myungsoo felt himself grin. He hadn't seen his friend in a long, long time. He had missed the other boy.

"Hey, Sungyeol! Lee Sungyeo─"

Myungsoo froze in his step when he caught sight of the boy's face. His heart skipped a beat, and it felt as if ice cold water had been dumped into his veins. He almost couldn't recognize his friend. Sungyeol's face was bloodied and bruised beyond recognition. Bright, red crimson stained his body, and his eyes were cold and hollow.

Myungsoo felt his mouth fall open in a silent gasp, too shocked to say anything.

Sungyeol parted his lips in a slow, shaky motion, as if his jaw would fall apart if he moved too fast. The moment his lips were open a spray of scarlet splattered onto the floor.

"Sung─" Myungsoo gasped in alarm, taking a step towards his friend. He froze in his step when the boy looked back up at him, and he felt his breath catch in his throat.

Sungyeol raised his hand towards Myungsoo, and it felt as if his arm would fall off with how violently it shook. He opened his mouth and the words that came out caused Myungsoo to─

Myungsoo woke with a start, a gasp tearing from his lips as his eyes flew open. His chest heaved violently as he lay in his bed, soaked in a pool of his own sweat. He stared up at the ceiling with wide eyes until his breathing evened out, and he sat up slowly with a groan. There was a dull ache in his head, and Myungsoo released a shaky breath as he brought his hand up to his temples.

It had been a long time since he had last dreamed of Sungyeol.

"Myungsoo?"

He froze, his entire body stiffening when he realized that he was not alone. His eyes narrowed when he saw the shadow beneath his door, and he cursed quietly to himself, wondering how he had not noticed it before. That girl was back.

"Myungsoo are you alright in there?"

Myungsoo could feel his eyes rolling from the sound of concern in her voice. Of course he was fine. He was more than fine. Why couldn't she just leave him alone?

"Myungsoo?"

An annoyed huff tore from Myungsoo's lips and he turned away from the door in annoyance. He didn't understand why she always came to bother him. What was her name again? He couldn't even remember, he just wanted her to leave him alone. He was perfectly happy by himself. He didn't need this girl and her fake concern. He just wanted to be by himself.

The girl outside had grown silent as Myungsoo grumbled internally, and he found himself slowly turning to glance at the door in spite of himself. She was usually much louder than this, and he found his eyebrows furrowing in curiosity. Her shadow was still there, but she said nothing. Before Myungsoo could think too much about this curious fact, he realized that she was playing music.

He blinked, entranced by the sound.

Suzy arrived at Myungsoo's house early that day, but she found to her disappointment that nothing had changed. His parents still weren't home, and Myungsoo was still in his room. With a sigh, Suzy had slowly made her way to the boy's door and plopped down in her usual spot.

She held her breath, leaning her ear against the door, but when she heard the even breathing coming from within, she exhaled deeply and slumped down against the hard wood. Suzy stared ahead at the wall before her as a heavy sigh escaped her lips.

It had been weeks, and she still hadn't managed to pull a word out of the boy beyond the door. Perhaps Myungsoo really was a lost cause.

Suzy sat up at that thought and shook her head, gently slapping her cheeks. She refused to let herself think like that. She wouldn't give up on Myungsoo.

Suzy reached into the bag that lay by her side and pulled out a small Walkman. It was an old device, but Suzy found that it strangely suited her. The house was still eerily silent, and so the girl had brought a tape with her to play. It was her favorite song, on a blank tape that she had found at the bottom of a box in her mother's closet. She didn't know what the song was called and it was in a language that she didn't understand, but it spoke to her in other ways.

With a content sigh, Suzy leaned back against the door and slowly shut her eyes as the music began to play. She lost track of how long she sat there, the soothing cords of the song engulfing her senses, when suddenly a loud gasp from inside the room tore Suzy from her reverie.

"Myungsoo?" She asked in alarm. She could hear heavy breathing coming from inside the room, and she felt her eyebrows furrowing with concern as she turned to press her ear to the door. "Myungsoo, are you alright in there?"

The heavy breathing from beyond the door slowed, and Suzy was met with silence.

"Myungsoo?" Suzy asked again, frowning. She heard the light rustle of fabric and then the room was still again. Myungsoo made no more noises, but Suzy's alarm refused to go away. She reached her hand out to turn the Walkman off when suddenly─

"What are you listening to?"

Suzy froze, her hand resting on the Walkman as she all but jumped out of her skin.

The voice sounded soft and shaky, as if it hadn't been used in a long, long time, and it was close, much too close. Suzy blinked in surprise when she realized that Myungsoo was sitting just on the opposite side of the door.

"What?"

"What are you listening to?" The voice asked again. Suzy could her the impatience in Myungsoo's voice.

"O-Oh." Suzy stammered, too stunned to fully comprehend. "Yeah."

An exasperated sigh came from the door, and Suzy couldn't help but smile in spite of the situation. The sound was just so familiar, so Myungsoo, she couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her lips.

"It was my mother's song." Suzy explained, leaning back against the door. "I found it in her things. I can't understand what they're saying but it's a beautiful song, don't you think?"

Myungsoo didn't respond, but it was a comfortable silence that engulfed the two. Suzy found herself smiling as her eyes grew heavier and heavier. She had finally gotten Myungsoo to speak.

"Can I be close to you."

"What?" Suzy asked, her eyes flying open once more. Myungsoo's words had been so sudden, so soft, she wondered if she had imagined them. "What did you say?"

Myungsoo hesitated for a moment before replying quietly, "Can I be close to you. That's what they're saying in the song."

"You can understand it?"

Another scoff came from behind the door, followed by Myungsoo's disgruntled muttering. "It's in English, Stupid, who doesn't understand it?"

"So you finally got him to talk." Sungjong's voice was muffled and Suzy could hear laughter from over the line.

"That's right." The girl said proudly.

"How long has it been, a month?"

"It's been three weeks, thank you very much."

"And? How have things been going?"

"Well..." Suzy trailed off sullenly. She was sitting on her balcony, looking down at the twinkling lights of the neighborhood below her with a bowl of watermelon in her lap. "He hasn't really said a word since then, but sometimes..."

"Sometimes?"

"Sometimes he sits against the door and listens to me."

"Listens to you doing what?"

"I don't know. Talking. Breathing."

"And you don't find this strange at all."

"Well it's better than when he was just ignoring me." Suzy replied defensively, munching down on her watermelon.

"He sits there and listens to you breathe, Suzy─" There was more laughter.

"Why is it so loud over there?"

"Sorry, Howon came over. We're watching a movie." Sungjong replied after what sounded like a brief scuffle.

"Tell Princess to hurry up and come home, I'm tired of seeing your face every day." Suzy heard over the line.

A chuckle escaped her lips as she glanced towards the house next to hers. The lights were on in every room save for one. Myungsoo's room. The blinds were drawn and it was dark inside.

"Tell Howon I said hi." Suzy said absentmindedly when an idea suddenly came to her mind.