Baekhyun slowly opened his eyes to a brightly lit place. He looked around and saw nothing but white. White everywhere. There were no windows or doors or walls. He sat up from the concrete bench he was laying on and nearly jumped out of his skin when a voice spoke.

“Welcome,” a stranger greeted dressed in white suit.

“To where, exactly?” Baekhyun asked with a look of confusion across his face. “Where am I?”

“The afterlife.” The other answered nonchalantly.

It took him a moment, but the stranger could see Baekhyun had caught on. “You mean--”

“Yes, Baekhyun. I’m sorry.”

“I’m-- I’m dead?” Baekhyun asked knitting his eyebrows, his stomach knotting a million ways, but he wanted to make sure he was on the same page, to which the stranger nodded. “Why can’t I remember anything?”

“It’ll come back to you, slowly, but it will. My name is Jongdae.” he smiled. “Come, let me show you around.”

∻∻∻

After a 3 hour drive the boys finally dismounted the van and hurried to either relieve themselves behind a tree or ran into the woods to explore. Yelps and whoops, complaints and laughter filled the stilled air. They had made it up the mountain to their favorite camp ground. This was a much needed vacation for all of them. With nothing but work and school, they were sure going to  enjoy themselves this 4 day weekend.

Baekhyun remembered them jumping into the lake, making fires and singing along to a guitar, exploring caves and falling asleep under the stars.
He remembered stealing glances at Chanyeol as he cracked jokes with Junmyeon and laughing when Jongin pushed Kyungsoo into the water.
He remembered grilling meat in the afternoon for dinner, drinking beer at dusk and eating smores by nightfall for desert.

He remembered making love to the person he swore he'd spend the rest of his life with.
He could still feel Chanyeol’s breath ghosting his skin, his warmth spreading across his entire body, his sounds engraving themselves in his ears, his touch causing him to burn-- everywhere.
He remembered never wanting it to end.

∻∻∻

After the tour, they stood back at the top of the stairs in front of the building from which he and Baekhyun had first walked out of.

“Who are they?” Baekhyun asked, pointing to a group of people at the bottom of the stairs wearing the same clothes he was.

“They’re just like you.”

∻∻∻

Baekhyun remembered they were getting ready to leave and he decided to bid nature farewell. He lifted his arms to the sky and inhaled deeply as he stood at the edge of a cliff, his favorite spot to stand because he could see everything from up there.

“Time to go, love.” Chanyeol called to him.

“I’m going,” he replied turning on his heels when ground suddenly gave way where Baekhyun was standing causing him to fall through, however when he wasn’t falling he willed himself to open his eyes and found himself being gripped by his wrist.

“Chanyeol!” He shouted.

“Hang on, hyung! I got you!” Chanyeol groan as he clutched the side of the cliff. The rock was crumbling and there was no guarantee it would hold both of them. 

“Someone help! Help!” Chanyeol shouted as loud as he could, but Baekhyun knew this place was too far from earshot. “Just hang on!”

The rocked crumbled more and Chanyeol’s grip began to slip.

“Chanyeol, you have to let me go. If you don’t we’ll both die!” Chanyeol knew his boyfriend was right, and his heart ached how Baekhyun was so willing to die in order to save him.

“Help’s coming, Baek! Just hold on, hold on!”

“Chanyeol, listen to me!” Baekhyun pleaded. “I love you, but you have to let me go! You have to let me fall!” Tear streaked his white ghost face. Baekhyun knew he was going to die, he knew it, but there wasn’t a chance he was going to take Park Chanyeol with him.

“I’m not letting go!”

“Chanyeol! Chanyeol, please!”

“Chanyeol, please!”

“Chanyeol, please!”

“Chanyeol, please!”

∻∻∻

His voiced echoed and faded, but there was nothing after that. What happened after that?
 

“It’s because you died.” Jongdae answered his unasked question. “That’s why you can’t see anymore. It’s alright, Baekhyun. Falling from that high-- It was fast, you didn’t suffer.”
 

Baekhyun looked long and hard. “He’s not here..”

“Sorry?” Jongdae said not catching what the other said.

“He let me go.” Baekhyun whispered as his eyes glided over everyone not a single face looking familiar and his heart suddenly felt like it had shattered into a million pieces. He was overwhelmed that for once Chanyeol had listened to him, but the thought of never seeing him again made him want to die all over again.

“The cliff gave way.” an all too familiar husky voice spoke up suddenly causing Baekhyun to freeze. “We fell, but the thought of letting you slip through my fingers never once crossed my mind, love.” Baekhyun turned to find his boyfriend standing in front of him. He was wearing the same thing Baekhyun was.

“I promised you I wouldn’t let go, so I didn’t.” Chanyeol said as he stepped towards them. “I couldn’t. I’m sorry...”

Baekhyun fell apart.
 

Chanyeol smiled.