Chanyeol was sitting on the corridor’s uncomfortable chair, eyes glued to the white tiles mirroring his swinging feet. The knots in his stomach gushed him as he practically didn’t dare breathing, tears stinging the corners or his eyes. Nurses were rushing from all sides, but he couldn’t hear them, his mind replaying the words that his mother had told him.

“Baekhyun is missing, Channie. He got lost. They’re still looking for him.”

It had all ringed like a bad joke to him.

It couldn’t be.

Baekhyun couldn’t disappear.

Because Baekhyun was a hero.

And everyone knows that heroes are invincible.

Chanyeol trusted Baekhyun.

It had been three days since that day, and early this morning, his mother had pulled him out of his bed, muttering some words about going to the hospital. The boy’s little mind didn’t take long to put the pieces together.

They had found Baekhyun.

However, people didn’t seem quite happy about it. Tears were being shed, cries were being heard, but none of them seemed filled with joyful feelings. And the toddler wasn’t stupid.

Something was off.

Suddenly, familiar voices caught the boy’s attention, detaching his gaze from the white marble imitation.

“What the is this system!” A masculine tone fumed. “They are all corrupted to the core!” His friends’ father stormed out of the room, his wife following him with tear stained cheeks.

“Darling…” She cried, trying to reason him, putting her hand on her husband’s arm. But he simply shoved her away, clearly displeased.

“How can they threaten us this way?!” He slumped into a chair similar to Chanyeol’s, unaware of the latter’s presence. “We’re talking about someone’s life here!” He buried his face into his hands, back shivering. Mrs Byun took the seat beside him, gently caressing him:

“It’s okay darling.” She forced a smile. “I’ll stop mine for a while and I’ll start looking for a new job. It’s okay.” Her voice was soft as her hand brushed up and down against her man’s back. But Chanyeol was simply too young to notice the false notes under it. Furthermore, half of the words used were too complicated for his young age. “They found him. Everything is going to be alright.” She stopped her movement, bringing her hand to her lap, enlacing her fingers together in one fist, gaze glued to it as she started nibbling at her lower lip. “But we need to pay his surgery. We can’t-“ Her voice broke for a second as she swept a tear away with the hem of her sleeve. “But Baekhyun.” She started again. “Baekhyun is so young. We can’t possibly compromise his future just because of me. We need to pay for this surgery. Please, darling.”

But the said man only let out a pained cry.

And that sound did something to Chanyeol’s heart.

They say that seeing a person cry is sad, but at that moment, Chanyeol thought that nothing was sadder than a father’s cry. He didn’t quite comprehend the situation, but he caught the seriousness of it, making his childish heart squeeze inside of his chest.

All of a sudden, the father got up with a determined frown on his face. Kissing his wife on the forehead tenderly, he then stomped away, slamming the room’s door behind him. Mrs. Byun then lost it, letting her cries invade the silent corridors.

Discreetly, the little boy walked toward her, wrapping his little chubby arms around her convulsing frame. She stiffened in surprise, emitting a choking sound.

“My mommy always says that hugs are the best medicine against tears.” He whispered, hugging her closer. The woman peered up from her hands, eye’s flooded with tears:

“Oh Chanyeol.” She returned the embrace, burying her nose in the crook of the little boy’s neck, taking in the soothing sent of kid shampoo. “Baekhyun is going to be alright, dear. He’s going to be fine.” She hummed, half to herself, half to the elf-eared toddler. But the later didn’t need the comfort. His faith in Baekhyun was enough to fill him with hope.

“I know it, Mrs Byun.” Chanyeol looked up at her, his tooth rich smile shining at her. “Because Hyunnie is a hero!”

The lady’s eyes widened for a second, before a small smile spread on her face. Ruffling the boy’s dark locks, she wondered how this tiny body could contain so much optimism.

It was probably because Chanyeol still hadn’t been deceived by the devilish lie life was.

“Yeah, Baekhyun is a hero…” She hummed.

Please Chanyeol, save him.

Nobody knew what had happened to Baekhyun during those three nightmarish days. The police had found his bruised and broken tiny body down a cliff, half dead.

And whilst Chanyeol had his forehead pasted against the glass, gaze focused on the small frame curled on the hospital bed after the successful surgery, he wondered if Baekhyun had tried to fly but had instead crashed on the ground.

No, Baekhyun is a hero.

People all need a reassuring presence beside them, someone they can lean on without fearing to fall, someone with whom they could close their eyes without fearing getting hurt.

To Chanyeol, Baekhyun was this person. This brick essential to the equilibrium of his world.

The goofy kid was never really good with making friends, the others often finding him somehow strange or scary. So Chanyeol had taken it upon him to always play alone and never tag along with them so he wouldn’t be a burden. His world had since then only consisted of nothing but solitude. It was like four walls encaging him. But the walls were crooked and unstable, bearing a threatening roof that Chanyeol struggled to hold up all by himself. And he only feared the day when those walls would collapse and that roof crush him. Anyhow, he would still always play alone, the cheering voices of the other playing kids echoing in the background beside his walls, constantly tugging on Chanyeol lonely heart.

But one day, a miracle happened.

Baekhyun happened.

The day they met, the smaller one had overcame his walls and entered his world, saving him from loneliness and stabilizing its walls with his presence. Chanyeol was no more the only one struggling to hold up the roof of his world up. Now Baekhyun was holding the other part of the wall, making it easier to lift, lighter to bear. He was now part of his world.

Baekhyun had saved him from loneliness’ deathly grip.

Baekhyun was his hero.

But the storm was not far away.

***

Both boys were seated on the swing, watching as the rotten leaves were falling from the trees, meeting the ground in a last graceless dance. Autumn was here and it had long since replaced the hot feeling of the summer. Their parents had decided to go on a little picnic before winter would settle and snow would take its place on the ground. The four of them were settled farther away, chattering between them and glancing at their kids from time to time, only to prevent anything bad from happening. They had grown a bit protective since the last events.

Chanyeol side-eyed his friend who was quietly sitting on the swing beside him, eying the forest. The infamous forest from this day. Since the accident, Baekhyun would talk less than before. Often, he would start talking but all of a sudden, his voice would turn mute as he would gaze in nothingness, his pupils not focused on anything precise. But after some seconds, he would always laugh it off, blabbering something else. And Chanyeol didn’t mind. As long as Baekhyun seemed happy.

But this time, his friend’s laugh didn’t chime in the air and the taller one was growing worried. Trying to find something to distract him, he started swinging his legs in attempt to move. Gradually, his swing was going higher and higher, Chanyeol beaming as he felt the wind caress his face and ruffle his hair.

“Hyunnie, look!” He chirped, voice cracking from happiness. “I’m flying!”

But his friend’s reaction was something he didn’t predict:

“Channie stop!” The boy shouted, springing from his seat. “Stop it, it’s dangerous!”

“Don’t worry Hyunnie, I’m careful!” He tried to convince the frightened boy. “Try it, it’s so funny!” He chuckled.

However, his joy was short-lived when suddenly he felt soothing tug at his swing. He had just enough time to see that it was Baekhyun that was standing beside him, trying to stop his swing. Unfortunately, the latter’s plan didn’t go as planned as the swing was going too fast for him catch it and he only managed to make it jolt slight by brushing the rope with his fingers. But it also resulted in him being pushed forward by the force and making him loose his balance.

“Hyunnie!”

But Chanyeol wasn’t fast enough to make the swing stop. The plastic seat collided with the smaller boy’s forehead, sending him flying a few feet away. Lots of cries and alert screams were heard as their parents rushed toward their side. Chanyeol could feel his eyes watering at the sight of Baekhyun’s body curled on the ground in pain.